Caring for baby with cleft lip / palate - Any tips?

One of my close friends just found out that her baby will be born with a bilateral cleft lip and perhaps palate as well.





She understands the surgical fixes, etc., but is wondering about practical day to day things such as breastfeeding, bathing, dental care when teeth start coming, etc.





Anyone with experience have some tips?Caring for baby with cleft lip / palate - Any tips?
Breastfeeding..Hmm...They really don't have suction..It's like trying to drink through a straw that has a hole in it..Not saying that it can't be done..There are moms that have..A lot pump..They do have special bottles available..Some kind of like a syringe, some you squeeze..Baths, because kiddos born with cleft have ';ear problems'; the only real difference is you have to be a little more careful about getting water in them..The eustation (sp?) tubes are usually mishapen or short, leading to ear infections..A lot of kiddos end up having tubes put in..They do tend to have gas reflux as well..They take in a lot of air so just a little more gassy..Teeth come in a little later..They also tend to have more cavities as well..My daughter was born with a unilateral cleft lip and palate..Hers actually look pretty good...She's missing a few (you can't really tell though) and has one that fills her cleft..Since she's going to have a child with a bilateral cleft, I'm not sure about the surgery schedules..Ella's were at 6 months, 12 months, she'll have another at possibly 5 years and 8 years of age if all goes as planned..Ella was just a little behind in babbling, sitting up, crawling, and walking..We're starting speech up again soon..(Her speech is delayed)..I can't think of anything else off the top of my head..Like the nurse told me, they cry, poop, and do whatever else babies do..Then again, I'm not saying it's easy..It's quite the journey..Lots of ups and down..There is A LOT of support available..It helped me so much to talk to other parents and peek at pictures..Here are a few links for ya!





www.cleftadvocate.org


www.cleft.org


www.cleftline.org


www.carepages.com





Ella has a few stories on cleftline..She also has a carepage named EllaYvonne on carepages.com ..Not sure how much of a help that will be since their clefts will differ, but we do have some pics up to show her progress..My email is rmsdbq@yahoo.com if you have any other questions..Good luck and know that it's A LOT more common then you know...Caring for baby with cleft lip / palate - Any tips?
has she contacted the cleft lip and pallet association? Google it for your area/location and they will be able to advise.


Not sure about feeding apart from the fact that you can get special bottles - bathing should be no different.


Glad shes got a good friend like you to support her - might be tough at first with peoples negative reactions, but all will be ok.
depending on the severity of the cleft she may be able to breastfeed, but he may have a poor suck and need some supplementation. Until the baby comes and the degree of the cleft can be seen she will not know, rest assured she will get plenty of help from the hospital staff.
There is a woman on pregnancyweekly.com on the breastfeeding board who is successfully breastfeeding a baby with a cleft palate. I'm sure she would be happy to answer any questions in that area.