GBMC experts discuss the Greater Baltimore Cleft Lip and Palate program

Every year, one in one thousand babies is born with a cleft lip and one in two thousand babies is born with a cleft palate.

In this Facebook Live segment, experts Dr. Antonie Kline, Director of Pediatric Genetics and Medical Director of the Greater Baltimore Cleft Lip and Palate program and Dr. Patrick Byrne, Co-Director of the Greater Baltimore Cleft Lip and Palate discuss this birth defect and its implications with host, Greg Carpenter from Today's 101.9 Morning Show.

The word cleft simply means "an opening." All babies start out with an opening in their mouth that closes over time in the womb. In babies born with a cleft lip or palate, the upper jaw and/or lip did not fully close during fetal development. This causes a host of challenges that require comprehensive care throughout the first 18 to 19 years of life. Doctors Kline and Byrne answer pre-submitted and live questions on topics including:

• The potential causes of clefts
• How a cleft lip or palate can affect a child's development
• How families cope with having a child born with a cleft lip or palate
• The basic treatments that are given as the child grows
• How this condition is treated overseas and why it is such a focus for medical missions

The Greater Baltimore Cleft Lip and Palate program at GBMC is one of three in Maryland. It is made up of a multidisciplinary, multi-institutional team that treats patients from infancy through adulthood. Care is provided by a comprehensive team that includes specialists in dental care, speech pathology, nutrition, genetics, psychology, audiology, social work, and more.