cleft lip repair

[yvonne]

hello, has anyone ever seen a "healed cleft lip"
before? my daughter born 12/29/97 was born with a cleft scar and
puckered lip and one side of her nose is slightly flat? Doctors
said the cleft healed in the womb.no surgery was done since it
was not medically necasary however my brother was born with a
full cleft lip and palate and he had two surgeries and looks
fine. my daughter's lip is not the way his is and he was born
with the full deformity my insurance surely wont cover a surgery
since it would be considered cosmetic but i dont understand just
because she wasnt born with a full cleft doesnt mean she should
have to suffer and not have a correction done? i havent consulted
any surgeons as of yet but just wondering if anyone else has done
the same thing? and what cost is a correction or revision????

[karen]

my daughter was born november 1999. With a "healed"
or "fused" bilateral cleft lip. I took her to a plastic
surgeon on a cleft team. He suggested to repair her lip. He said
that she is considered to have bilat cleft lip even though it is
closed the muscles underneath aren't together. He said there
shouldn't be any problem with the insurance company. She is
scheduled for a bilateral cleft lip repair on May 20.

[karen]

my daughter was born november 1999. With a "healed"
or "fused" bilateral cleft lip. I took her to a plastic
surgeon on a cleft team. He suggested to repair her lip. He said
that she is considered to have bilat cleft lip even though it is
closed the muscles underneath aren't together. He said there
shouldn't be any problem with the insurance company. She is
scheduled for a bilateral cleft lip repair this month.

[karen]

my daughter was born november 1999. With a "healed"
or "fused" bilateral cleft lip. I took her to a plastic
surgeon on a cleft team. He suggested to repair her lip. He said
that she is considered to have bilat cleft lip even though it is
closed the muscles underneath aren't together. He said there
shouldn't be any problem with the insurance company. She is
scheduled for a bilateral cleft lip repair this month.

[karen]

my daughter was born november 1999. With a "healed"
or "fused" bilateral cleft lip. I took her to a plastic
surgeon on a cleft team. He suggested to repair her lip. He said
that she is considered to have bilat cleft lip even though it is
closed the muscles underneath aren't together. He said there
shouldn't be any problem with the insurance company. She is
scheduled for a bilateral cleft lip repair this month.

[karen]

my daughter was born november 1999. With a "healed"
or "fused" bilateral cleft lip. I took her to a plastic
surgeon on a cleft team. He suggested to repair her lip. He said
that she is considered to have bilat cleft lip even though it is
closed the muscles underneath aren't together. He said there
shouldn't be any problem with the insurance company. She is
scheduled for a bilateral cleft lip repair this month.

[Anna]

Hello,


My name is Anna, I'm 23 and have the same problem that your child has. My mother's grandfather had a full cleft palete, she knew when she first saw me that I had had one too, but it was comepletely healed.


She said there was a faint line between my nose and lip and there was extra skin on my top gums where it had healed. The most noticeable sign was that my nostrils where uneven.


It has gotten less and less noticeable over the years. Nobody can tell that my nose is not perfect, except for in pictures when they're shot at a certain angle.


I'm a parent too, but my daugther does'nt have this problem. However, as a parent and a person that has been through this, I can tell you she will most likely be very self-conscious about her nose. I was. I got upset every year during picture day (when we got pictures back.)


The best thing that helped me was when my mother would tell me that I was a miracle. That somebody up there was looking out for me and didn't want me to look that way for some special reason.


I've never done it, but maybe you could find a make-up artist that could teach you some make-up tricks that would make things more balanced, especially in middle school and high school.


Also, when she comes to you, upset because someone made fun of her, don't try to down play it like it's not a big deal. Let her cry on your shoulder. Show her some pictures of herself that are beautiful. Show her pictures of the stars that are beautiful, but not perfect.


Try to instill in her from an early age that "perfect" is boring. The most talanted, most beautiful people in the world aren't perfect. They're unique, and that's why we love them.