Reconstruction of nose in patients with cleft lip and palate
The syndrome of cleft lip and palate approximately occurs in one of each 700 people and can have different reasons. During pregnancy, about the sixth one and eleventh week, the structures that give rise to lips and palate must be joined in the middle to get the shape that they will have in the adult. When this doesn’t happen, baby born with this syndrome; both can appears or just one. This affection can be slight or severe and be present in a bilateral or unilateral form. Almost always, children with cleft lip also have severe problems to breath and associated deformity of the nose. Besides seeing affected their appearance, they can have difficulties to be fed appropriately, limitations of language and infections of the ear, besides alteration in the dentition.
Patients with lip and nose deformity require of several surgeries to accomplish a harmonious appearance and an accurate functionality. These procedures are realized from few weeks after baby birth and in some patients during their adult life.
Dr. Jorge Alberto Espinosa Reyes, as an Otorhynolaringologist and plastic facial surgeon, has a wide experience on treating these deformations of lip and nose.
On adults, cleft nose is associated frequently with functional and aesthetic alterations. The surgery in these cases pretend to obtain a natural appearance and an accurate breathing that helps to diminish the associated problems in the ear (otitis), paranasal sinuses (sinusitis) and self esteem of patient.
This procedure is highly complex and requires frequently the use of grafts to improve the nasal architecture. Those can be taken from nasal bone of patient; although in some occasions it’s necessary to grafts from eras or ribs.
In consultation, Dr. Jorge Alberto Espinosa Reyes can explain the details of procedure, costs, recovering, and what you can expect of the result. Likewise, Dr. Espinosa will inform you about the stage after surgery and the way as it must be handled. |
