How does cleft palate affect hearing?

Children born with a cleft palate commonly experience middle ear problems and associated hearing loss. This is a problem for children with a cleft palate because the muscles of the palate are important in allowing air into the middle ear, as well as allowing drainage of secretions from the middle ear.

What problems are associated with cleft lip and palate?

Children with a cleft lip with or without a cleft palate or a cleft palate alone often have problems with feeding and speaking clearly and can have ear infections. They also might have hearing problems and problems with their teeth.

Can cleft lip cause hearing problems?

Children born with a cleft lip alone are not normally at a greater risk of long-term deafness than the general population. However, children with a cleft palate or cleft lip and palate are likely to have longer-term difficulties with their hearing.

What sounds are affected by cleft palate?

After surgical repair of the cleft palate, they should develop a large a wider range of speech sounds such as p, b, t, d, k, g so that babbling includes strings such as bababa, dadada etc. Words start to emerge around a baby’s first birthday.

How does cleft palate affect eustachian tube?

With a cleft palate, the eustachian tube is often blocked and fluid may build up in the middle ear. Usually it is not painful. Occasionally, fluid in the middle ear becomes infected.

Does a cleft palate affect speech?

Children born with cleft palate may have a delay in the beginning of speech and development of speech sounds. In addition, children with cleft palate may produce speech errors that are directly related to clefting.

What is the most common complication of the child has cleft palate?

One of the most immediate concerns after birth is feeding. While most babies with cleft lip can breast-feed, a cleft palate may make sucking difficult. Ear infections and hearing loss. Babies with cleft palate are especially at risk of developing middle ear fluid and hearing loss.

What is associated with cleft palate?

Sometimes when a child is born with a cleft lip and/or palate there is a chance that they may have additional medical condition/s. These associated conditions include ‘Pierre Robin Sequence’ (PRS), Stickler Syndrome and 22q11 Deletion Syndrome.

Why do patients with cleft lip or palate have recurrent otitis media?

Otitis media with effusion is ubiquitous in children who have a cleft palate. The cause is simply the lack of proper insertion of the tensor veli palatini muscle in the soft palate. The muscle is, therefore, unable to open the eustachian tube on swallowing or wide mouth opening.

How does cleft lip and palate affect speech?

Children with a cleft that affects their soft palate (the part towards the back of the throat) may have problems with speech that include sounding nasal. This is caused by the soft palate not being able to properly close off the mouth from the nose while speaking and therefore letting air escape through the nose.

How does the cleft lip and cleft palate affect speech?

Speech Sound Development: Children born with cleft palate may have a delay in the beginning of speech and development of speech sounds. In addition, children with cleft palate may produce speech errors that are directly related to clefting.

What is the main function of the Eustachian tube?

This air-containing space is maintained by the Eustachian tube, which opens intermittently to equalize the intratympanic air pressure with the pressure in the external auditory canal. It also removes secretion and epithelial debris from the middle ear by ciliary motion and gravity.

Can a cleft palate cause hearing loss?

Children born with a cleft palate commonly experience middle ear problems and associated hearing loss. This is a problem for children with a cleftpalate because the muscles of the palate are important in allowing air into the middle ear, as well as allowing drainage of secretions from the middle ear.

Why is it important for cleft palate children to have hearing tests?

This is very important, as liquid gathering inside the ear can influence hearing. And can generate higher dangers of the center ear. Consequently, it is very important for kids with cleft palate to have a regular hearing test, for guardians to know about the danger of ear diseases and to consider any scenes of ear pain seriously.

What causes otitis media in children with cleft palate?

This is a problem for children with a cleftpalate because the muscles of the palate are important in allowing air into the middle ear, as well as allowing drainage of secretions from the middle ear. When this process is interrupted, fluidcan build up (otitis media) in the middle ear.

What are cleft lip and cleft palate birth defects?

Cleft lip and cleft palate are birth defects that occur when a baby’s lip or mouth do not form properly during pregnancy. Together, these birth defects commonly are called “orofacial clefts”. The lip forms between the fourth and seventh weeks of pregnancy.