Facial cleft is a birth difference in which parts of the face do not join fully during early development in the womb. It is usually recognized before birth or at birth, and people with facial cleft may have a gap or difference affecting the lip, palate, nose, eye area, or other facial structures.
Not everyone will have the same experience. Some people with facial cleft have mild changes, while others have feeding, speech, hearing, breathing, vision, or dental problems depending on the type and severity. Facial cleft is lifelong, but treatment often includes surgery, feeding support, speech therapy, dental care, and care from a craniofacial team. Survival depends on whether facial cleft occurs alone or with other serious health problems, and many people live long lives with proper care.
How many people live with Facial cleft?
There is not one reliable, up-to-date count of how many people are living with facial clefts worldwide or in the United States. Most published sources report how often babies are born with facial clefts, rather than the total number of children and adults living with them, so current global and U.S. totals are not consistently available.
Overview
Facial cleftSymptoms
Facial cleft can affect the lip, nose, mouth, or jaw. Signs often include a visible split at birth, feeding trouble, speech differences later on, and sometimes breathing, hearing, or dental problems.
Outlook and prognosis
For many living with Facial cleft, outlook is often good with coordinated care. Feeding, speech, hearing, dental growth, and appearance can improve over time, often through staged treatment. Long-term needs vary with the cleft type and severity.
Causes and risk factors
Facial cleft usually happens before birth when facial tissues do not join fully. Causes can include genetic changes, family history, and sometimes new changes not inherited from either parent. Risk may also rise with smoking, alcohol, poorly controlled diabetes, obesity, and low folate.
Genetic influences
Genetics can be important in Facial cleft, but they are only part of the picture. Some cases are linked to gene changes or inherited syndromes, while many happen through a mix of genetic susceptibility and early pregnancy exposures.
Diagnosis
Facial cleft is usually diagnosed by its clinical features on prenatal ultrasound or at birth. Doctors confirm the diagnosis with a physical exam and, in some cases, imaging or genetic tests to look for related syndromes.
Treatment and drugs
Treatment for facial cleft usually involves a team of surgeons, dentists, speech specialists, and counselors. Surgery often repairs the lip or palate in stages as a child grows. Feeding support, dental care, speech therapy, and hearing checks can also help.
Symptoms
Daily activities can be affected from the start, especially feeding, breathing, and later speech or dental care. A facial cleft can change how the lip, mouth, nose, eye area, or nearby facial tissues form before birth. For many people with facial cleft, the most noticeable signs are a visible gap or split and practical issues with eating, hearing, or speaking, though some clefts are mild and mainly affect appearance. The early features of facial cleft depend on where the cleft is and how deep it is.
A gap, notch, or split may affect the lip, cheek, upper jaw, or skin near the nose or eye. It can be small and subtle or extend deeper into the tissues.
Some people have an opening in the roof of the mouth. This can let milk or food move the wrong way and may make feeding slow or tiring.
The nose may look uneven, flattened on one side, or pulled slightly off center. Airflow may also be less smooth, so some people sound stuffy or breathe more noisily.
In some facial clefts, the eyelid or area around the eye does not form in the usual way. This can lead to eye dryness, irritation, extra tearing, or trouble fully protecting the eye.
How people usually first notice Facial cleft?
Facial cleft is usually first noticed during pregnancy on an ultrasound or at birth, when doctors or families can see an opening or unusual gap involving the lip, nose, palate, or other parts of the face. The first signs of facial cleft can vary widely, from a clearly visible difference in facial shape to feeding trouble, milk coming through the nose, or breathing difficulty if the cleft affects the mouth or airway. In some babies the change is obvious right away, while in others, especially when the palate is involved more than the outer face, facial cleft may first be recognized during an early newborn exam because feeding and mouth structure do not look typical.
Types of Facial cleft
Facial cleft can look quite different from one person to another, and the main variants are based on which parts of the lip, mouth, or face did not join fully during early development. In everyday life, this can affect feeding, speech, hearing, dental growth, and appearance in different ways. Researchers describe these categories to better understand patterns of the condition. When people ask about the types of facial cleft, they usually mean these well-recognized clinical variants.
Cleft lip
This variant affects the upper lip and may appear as a small notch or a wider opening that reaches toward the nose. It can happen on one side or both sides, and some babies have trouble latching or feeding at first. If the palate is not involved, speech problems may be less pronounced than in other variants.
Cleft palate
This variant affects the roof of the mouth, even when the lip looks typical from the outside. Many living with facial cleft of this type may have feeding difficulties early on, and later may develop nasal-sounding speech or frequent ear infections. Symptoms don’t always look the same for everyone.
Cleft lip palate
This combined variant affects both the upper lip and the roof of the mouth. It often causes more noticeable feeding and speech challenges than a cleft affecting only one area, and dental development may also be affected. Severity can range from a small opening to a wider cleft on one or both sides.
Submucous cleft palate
In this form, the tissues under the lining of the palate do not fully join, so the cleft may be harder to see at first. Some may find that feeding, speech, or ear problems are the first signs rather than an obvious visible gap. Because it can be subtle, diagnosis sometimes happens later in infancy or childhood.
Rare facial clefts
Less common variants of facial cleft involve other parts of the face, such as the nose, cheek, eye area, or jaw. These forms can vary widely in appearance and in how much they affect breathing, feeding, vision, or facial growth. Not everyone will experience every type.
Can I slow down the onset of symptoms?
No, there is no proven way to slow or delay the onset of a facial cleft, because it develops very early in pregnancy rather than starting later in life. Research suggests that before and during early pregnancy, not smoking, avoiding alcohol, managing diabetes, and reviewing medicines with a doctor may lower the chance of some facial clefts, but that is about reducing risk, not preventing them for sure. Good early pregnancy care, including taking folic acid if your clinician recommends it, can help support a healthy pregnancy, and while it cannot guarantee a facial cleft will not happen, it can help you make informed, practical choices.
What genetics can tell you about symptoms
Genetics can sometimes help explain why facial clefts happen and, in some cases, why the pattern is mild in one person but more complex in another. Certain genetic changes are linked with clefts that occur on their own, while others are tied to broader genetic conditions, which can affect which features appear, how severe the cleft is, and whether other parts of the body are involved. Even so, genes do not give a complete prediction for any one child, because symptoms can vary widely even among family members with the same genetic change.
Causes and risk factors
The underlying problem starts very early in pregnancy, and it may be driven by an inherited gene change or a new gene change in the baby. A family history of facial cleft can raise the chance, and some babies have facial cleft as part of a broader genetic syndrome. Some of the better-known risk factors for facial cleft during pregnancy are smoking, heavy alcohol use, some anti-seizure medicines, poorly controlled diabetes, and not getting enough folic acid. Family history can be one part of the story, but lifestyle and environment add their own chapters. In many babies, doctors cannot find one single cause.
What are the most common causes or risk factors?
A facial cleft usually starts very early in pregnancy, when parts of a baby’s face do not join together in the usual way. In many babies, there is no single clear cause, but the strongest links are a mix of inherited genes or a family history of clefts and, in some cases, an underlying genetic condition. Other important risk factors can include certain medicines taken during pregnancy, smoking or drinking alcohol during pregnancy, diabetes that is not well controlled, and not getting enough folic acid.
Environmental and biological risk factors
For facial cleft, risk usually comes from a mix of body-based factors in the pregnant parent and exposures during the first weeks of pregnancy. Doctors often group risks into internal (biological) and external (environmental). Many babies with facial cleft are born without one single clear cause, but some factors are known to raise the chance. This is why risk factors for facial cleft in pregnancy are usually discussed as a combination rather than one trigger.
Diabetes present before pregnancy, especially when blood sugar is high early on, increases the chance of facial cleft. The risk is linked to the very early weeks when facial tissues are forming.
Some medicines taken in early pregnancy can raise the chance of facial cleft, including isotretinoin, methotrexate, and some anti-seizure drugs such as valproate or topiramate. Risk depends on the specific drug, the dose, and when exposure happens.
A high fever in the first trimester may slightly increase the chance of facial cleft. Researchers think overheating or inflammation at a key stage of development may interfere with normal tissue joining.
Advanced maternal age, and in some studies advanced paternal age, has been linked with a higher chance of facial cleft. The increase in risk is usually modest, but it can add to other biological or environmental factors.
Genetic risk factors
For families planning another pregnancy, one of the first questions is why a facial cleft happened and whether it could happen again. The genetic causes of facial cleft, especially the more common cleft lip and cleft palate, can range from an inherited family tendency to a single gene or chromosome change. Some risk factors are inherited through our genes. Risk patterns can differ somewhat between cleft lip with or without cleft palate and cleft palate alone.
Family history: Having a close relative with a facial cleft raises the chance that it can happen again in the family. The chance is usually higher when more than one relative is affected or when the cleft follows a clear inherited pattern.
Multiple genes: In many babies, no single gene fully explains the facial cleft. Instead, several inherited gene differences can work together and raise the chance of a cleft forming early in pregnancy.
Single-gene syndromes: Some facial clefts are part of a genetic syndrome caused by a change in one gene. When this happens, other birth differences may also be present, and the recurrence chance depends on whether a parent carries the same change.
Chromosome changes: Missing or extra chromosome material can sometimes lead to a facial cleft. These changes may be inherited or may happen for the first time in the baby.
New gene changes: A facial cleft can still happen when there is no known family history. In some babies, a new gene change appears for the first time and is not found in either parent.
Lifestyle risk factors
Facial cleft is present from birth, so everyday habits do not cause it. Still, how lifestyle affects facial cleft can be important for feeding, growth, dental health, speech work, surgical healing, and the risk of later complications. The most helpful factors are the routines that support nutrition, oral care, treatment follow-through, and protection of the airway and tissues.
Feeding technique and food texture can strongly affect intake in infants and children with a facial cleft. Poor latch, prolonged feeds, or unsuitable textures may lead to low weight gain, choking, or tiring during meals. Using cleft-adapted feeding strategies can improve growth and readiness for surgery.
Good overall nutrition supports growth, immune function, and wound healing in people with a facial cleft. Inadequate calories, protein, iron, or vitamins can slow recovery after repair and make it harder to keep up with speech or dental care. Balanced nutrition is one of the most practical lifestyle risk factors for facial cleft outcomes.
Daily brushing, fluoride use, and regular mouth care matter because clefts can increase the risk of tooth decay and gum problems. Food trapping around crowded teeth, scars, or dental appliances can worsen inflammation and infection risk. Strong oral hygiene can also support orthodontic and surgical treatment.
Smoking or secondhand smoke does not cause an existing facial cleft, but it can worsen healing and irritate the nose, throat, and airways. This may increase infections, inflammation, and problems after surgery. Avoiding tobacco exposure can improve recovery and reduce complications.
Risk prevention
Facial cleft is usually present from early development in pregnancy, so there is not always a way to fully prevent it. For many families, prevention means lowering risk where possible before and during pregnancy, and reducing complications with early prenatal and newborn care. Prevention isn’t about perfection, it’s about small steps that add up. Because causes can differ from one pregnancy to another, some prevention steps are general and others matter most when there is a family history or a known higher risk.
Seeing a doctor before pregnancy can help review medicines, health conditions, and family history linked with facial cleft. This can lower avoidable risks and may guide genetic counseling if facial cleft runs in the family.
Taking folic acid before conception and in early pregnancy may help reduce the chance of some birth differences, including some facial clefts. Many experts advise starting before pregnancy because the face forms very early, often before someone knows they are pregnant.
Not smoking, avoiding secondhand smoke, and staying away from alcohol and illegal drugs can help lower the risk of facial cleft. This also supports overall fetal growth and reduces other pregnancy complications.
Some medicines can raise the risk of birth differences, so it is important to review prescriptions, over-the-counter drugs, and supplements before and during pregnancy. Never stop an essential medicine on your own, but ask whether a safer option is possible.
Can you prevent Facial cleft?
Not always. Many facial clefts begin very early in pregnancy and cannot be prevented, especially when they are linked to gene changes or happen for reasons no one can control. Still, planning for pregnancy may lower the risk in some cases by taking folic acid, avoiding smoking and alcohol, keeping diabetes well controlled, and checking with a doctor before using medicines that could affect a developing baby.
Transmission
Facial cleft is not infectious, so it cannot be passed from one person to another through touching, kissing, coughing, or sharing food. When people ask about transmission, the more relevant question is how facial cleft is inherited.
How facial cleft is inherited can vary: some cases run in families because inherited gene changes raise the chance of a cleft, while many happen with no family history at all. The genetic transmission of facial cleft is often complex rather than a simple one-parent pattern, and some cases are linked to a new genetic change or to a mix of genes and early pregnancy factors.
When to test your genes
Genetic testing is most useful when a facial cleft occurs with other birth differences, developmental delay, a strong family history, or an unusual pattern suggesting a syndrome. In an isolated cleft, testing may still be discussed, but it is less likely to change care.
Diagnosis
Facial cleft is often recognized at birth because the changes in the lip, nose, jaw, or face can be seen during a physical exam. In some babies, it is also suspected before birth on prenatal ultrasound, especially when the cleft is larger. Getting a diagnosis is often a turning point toward answers and support, and the diagnosis of facial cleft may also include checking for related feeding, breathing, hearing, or eye concerns. Because facial clefts can vary a lot in appearance and severity, doctors usually combine visible findings with imaging and, in some cases, genetic tests.
Doctors carefully examine the face, mouth, palate, nose, and eyes to see where the cleft is and how far it extends. This helps confirm the diagnosis and guides the first steps in care.
Some facial clefts can be seen during pregnancy on routine ultrasound scans, most often in the second trimester. Ultrasound may suggest the condition before birth, but the full extent is often clearer after delivery.
CT scans or other imaging findings may be used to look at the bones of the face, the jaw, and nearby structures in more detail. These tests help surgeons plan treatment and check for deeper clefts that are not easy to see from the outside.
Doctors may perform feeding, breathing, and oral exams soon after birth, especially if the cleft affects the mouth or palate. These checks help find problems that may need prompt support, such as trouble latching, choking, or noisy breathing.
How is Facial cleft diagnosed?
A facial cleft is usually diagnosed by a doctor’s physical exam, either during pregnancy on an ultrasound or after birth by looking closely at the baby’s face and mouth. If the cleft seems more complex, imaging tests such as a CT scan, MRI, or X-ray may be used to see how the bones and soft tissues are affected and to help plan care. In some babies, doctors may also suggest genetic testing and other checks if there are signs that the facial cleft is part of a broader genetic condition.
Stages of Facial cleft
Facial cleft does not have defined progression stages. This is because it is a difference in how the face formed before birth, rather than an illness that usually worsens step by step over time. Doctors usually start with a conversation about feeding, breathing, speech, hearing, and facial growth, along with a physical exam and imaging when needed. In babies and children, follow-up focuses on how the cleft affects daily life and development, and the timing of treatment depends on the type of cleft and any related problems rather than on early symptoms of facial cleft moving through stages.
Outlook and prognosis
Outlook for people with facial cleft varies widely with the type and severity of the cleft, associated eye, brain, or airway abnormalities, and whether it occurs alone or as part of a syndrome. Many children with isolated craniofacial clefts can do well with staged reconstructive surgery, feeding support, speech and hearing care, and long-term dental and psychosocial follow-up, although multiple operations are often needed over time. Prognosis is generally better for milder clefts and worse for severe midline or extensive facial clefts that affect breathing, feeding, vision, or brain development. Mortality is usually low in isolated, surgically manageable cases, but the risk of death increases when there are major associated malformations, severe airway compromise, aspiration, or serious infections, especially in infancy. Long-term challenges may include speech differences, dental and jaw problems, vision or hearing impairment, and emotional or social stress, but coordinated multidisciplinary care can substantially improve function and quality of life.
Long-term effects
Many living with facial cleft do well, but the long-term picture can include effects on feeding, hearing, speech, teeth, and day-to-day social life. Which issues matter most often depends on whether the lip, the palate, or both are involved, as well as the timing of treatment and any related conditions. Long-term effects vary widely, and they may change from infancy to adulthood.
In babies, differences in the lip or palate can make sucking and swallowing less effective, so weight gain may need closer follow-up. For many, this improves after treatment, but early feeding difficulties can shape growth in the first months of life.
Many people with facial cleft, especially when the palate is involved, have a higher chance of fluid behind the eardrum and repeated ear infections. Over time, this can lead to temporary or sometimes longer-lasting hearing loss that may affect language development and school learning.
Speech may sound unusually nasal, unclear, or hard to understand if the palate does not close well during talking. These changes can persist into later childhood or adulthood, and they are among the most recognized long-term effects of facial cleft.
Teeth may come in crowded, missing, extra, or out of position near the cleft area, and the upper jaw may grow differently from the lower jaw. In later childhood and the teen years, this can affect chewing, bite, and facial balance.
How is it to live with Facial cleft?
Living with a facial cleft can look very different from one person to another, but for many it means balancing everyday life with extra medical, dental, speech, or hearing care, especially during childhood. Depending on the type and severity of the cleft, some people may have challenges with feeding early on, clearer speech, dental alignment, or repeated surgeries, and the emotional side can matter too, because visible differences sometimes bring unwanted attention or social stress. For families and other close supporters, daily life may include more appointments, planning, and advocacy, yet with coordinated care and support, many people with a facial cleft go to school, work, build relationships, and live full, active lives.
Treatment and drugs
Treatment for facial cleft depends on which parts of the lip, nose, mouth, or face are affected, how severe the cleft is, and whether there are feeding, speech, hearing, dental, or breathing problems. Care often involves a team that may include surgeons, feeding specialists, speech therapists, dentists or orthodontists, hearing specialists, and child health doctors, and treatment plans often combine several approaches. Surgery is the main treatment and is usually done in stages over time to improve feeding, speech, facial growth, appearance, and function, while some children also need dental work, braces, speech therapy, hearing treatment, or help with nutrition. There is no specific medicine that cures facial cleft, but doctors may use pain relief, antibiotics when needed, and medicines linked to anesthesia around the time of surgery. Not every treatment works the same way for every person, so follow-up over months or years is often needed as a child grows.
Can you cure Facial cleft?
There is no single cure for a facial cleft, but treatment can often close or repair the opening and improve things like feeding, speech, breathing, hearing, and appearance. Many people with a facial cleft need one or more surgeries over time, along with support such as dental care, speech therapy, and care for the eyes, ears, or nose depending on which parts of the face are affected.
Non-drug treatment
Daily care for facial cleft often starts with practical support for feeding, speech, hearing, teeth, and confidence as a child grows. Supportive therapies can make day-to-day life easier, whether that means helping a baby take in enough milk, helping a child be understood at school, or helping a teen feel more comfortable socially. The exact plan depends on the type of facial cleft and the child’s age, but care is usually coordinated by a cleft team with several specialists working together.
Babies with facial cleft may have trouble latching, creating suction, or taking in enough milk. Feeding specialists can suggest positioning, pacing, and special bottles or nipples so feeds are safer and less tiring. This is a key part of feeding support for babies with facial cleft, especially in the first weeks of life.
Many children with facial cleft need help with clear speech as sounds begin to develop. A speech-language therapist can work on sound production, mouth movement patterns, and strategies for speech that sounds too nasal. Early therapy may also support language and confidence in everyday conversations.
Cleft palate can raise the chance of fluid behind the eardrum and temporary hearing problems. Regular hearing checks help catch issues that may affect speech, learning, and social development. Some non-drug options are delivered by specialists, including audiology follow-up and listening support at school.
Teeth may come in crowded, misaligned, or with gaps near the cleft area. Regular dental visits, careful brushing guidance, and cavity prevention help protect oral health from an early age. Orthodontic care is often added later to guide jaw growth and tooth position.
Your genes may have an impact on how drugs work for you
For people with a facial cleft, day-to-day care usually centers more on surgery, feeding support, and speech or hearing care than on long-term medicines, so genes do not usually have a major, condition-specific effect on medication response. Even so, inherited differences can sometimes change how the body handles common medicines used around surgery, such as pain relief or anesthesia, which may affect how well they work or the chance of side effects. Because of that, the care team may ask about family reactions to medicines and adjust treatment if needed.
Pharmacological treatments
For facial cleft, medicines do not repair the opening itself, so treatment usually centers on surgery, feeding support, and other specialist care. Drugs are mainly used to manage related problems such as pain after procedures, infection, nasal congestion, or acid reflux in some babies. Starting a new prescription can bring questions, especially for families trying to balance feeding, sleep, and recovery. The medicines used for facial cleft depend on the child’s age, the type of cleft, and whether surgery or complications are involved.
Acetaminophen and ibuprofen are commonly used to ease pain after facial cleft surgery. Acetaminophen is often used in infants and young children, while ibuprofen may be added when the surgeon says it is safe.
In some cases, short-term opioids such as morphine or oxycodone may be used after major repair surgery. These medicines are reserved for more severe pain and need careful dosing because they can cause sleepiness, constipation, or slowed breathing.
Drugs such as amoxicillin, amoxicillin-clavulanate, or cephalexin may be prescribed if there is a wound infection or another bacterial infection around the time of treatment. They are not a routine long-term treatment for facial cleft itself, and doctors use them only when there is a clear reason.
Some babies with cleft palate or a broader facial cleft also have troublesome reflux that makes feeding harder. Medicines such as omeprazole or famotidine may be used in selected cases, but they treat symptoms around feeding rather than the cleft.
Genetic influences
When a baby is born with a facial cleft, many families want to understand why it happened and whether it could happen again in another pregnancy. It’s natural to ask whether family history plays a role. Genetics can influence facial cleft risk, but for many people this is a mix of inherited susceptibility and other factors that affect early development in the womb, rather than one single clear cause. Some facial clefts are part of a broader genetic syndrome, where a change in one gene or a chromosome difference also affects other parts of the body, while many others happen in babies with no known family history. Having a parent, child, or sibling with a facial cleft can raise the chance somewhat, but it does not mean another child will definitely be born with the same condition. If there is a strong family history of facial cleft, or if the cleft occurs along with other birth differences, genetic counseling can help explain the likely cause and the chance of it happening again.
Is Facial cleft genetic?
Genetics can be important in Facial cleft, but they are only part of the picture. Some cases are linked to gene changes or inherited syndromes, while many happen through a mix of genetic susceptibility and early pregnancy exposures.
Having a genetic risk is not necessarily a diagnosis
Genetic changes are a normal part of human biology and are widely found in the general population. Most of these variants do not directly affect health and simply reflect natural human diversity. For many genes, having a variant associated with a condition points to a possible link rather than a definite diagnosis, especially when several genes and environmental factors are involved. In some situations, however, a single well-studied variant in a particular gene can be enough to confirm a diagnosis.
Pharmacogenetics—how genetics influence drug effects
For many living with facial cleft, treatment is shaped not just by the cleft itself, but by day-to-day needs such as feeding, speech, hearing, breathing, and the timing of surgery. If facial cleft is part of a broader genetic condition, doctors may look more carefully for related concerns such as heart, airway, dental, or hearing problems before surgery and during follow-up. This can change which specialists are involved and how operations, anesthesia, and recovery are planned. Genetics is only one factor, but inherited differences can sometimes affect how the body processes certain pain medicines or anesthetic drugs, although this kind of testing is not routine for everyone with facial cleft. When the cleft seems to run in a family or appears along with other physical differences, a genetics evaluation can help guide treatment decisions and give clearer information about future family risk.
Interactions with other conditions
Day to day, people with facial cleft may be dealing with more than the visible difference alone, especially if feeding, hearing, or speech has also been affected. A cleft that involves the roof of the mouth can make fluid build up behind the eardrum more likely, so repeated ear infections and hearing loss may occur together with facial cleft, particularly in childhood. Many living with facial cleft also have dental and jaw problems, including crowded teeth, bite problems, and a higher chance of tooth decay, which can make eating and speech harder. Doctors call it a comorbidity when two conditions occur together. In some babies, facial cleft is part of a broader genetic syndrome, and that can bring other health issues such as heart problems, breathing difficulties, or differences in growth and development. Because of this, care often involves several specialists, and early checks can help spot related problems before they affect daily life more seriously.
How genes can cause diseases
Humans have more than 20,000 genes, each carrying out one or a few specific functions in the body. One gene instructs the body to digest lactose from milk, another tells the body how to build strong bones and another prevents the body's cells from beginning to multiply uncontrollably and developing into cancer. As all of these genes combined are the building instructions for our body, a defect in one of these genes can have severe health consequences.
Through decades of genetic research, we know the genetic code of any healthy/functional human gene. We have also identified that in certain positions on a gene, some individuals may have a different genetic letter from the one you have. We call these hotspots "Genetic Variations" or "Variants" in short. In many cases, studies have been able to show that having the genetic letter "G" in the position makes you healthy, but having the letter "A" in the same position disrupts the gene function and causes a disease. Genopedia allows you to view these variants in genes and summarizes all that we know from scientific research, which genetic letters (Genotype) have good or bad consequences on your health or on your traits.
What other conditions can cause similar symptoms to Facial cleft?
Some facial clefts can look similar to a cleft lip or cleft palate, which are much more common, or to other birth conditions that affect how the nose, eyes, jaw, or cheeks develop. Doctors may also consider causes such as bands in the womb that can disrupt normal facial growth and a small group of rare conditions that change facial shape from early pregnancy, because these can overlap in appearance.
History
People living with a facial cleft have been part of human history for as long as records and artwork have existed. Old sculptures, drawings, and written accounts from different parts of the world suggest that babies were born with clefts of the lip, palate, or other parts of the face long before modern medicine could explain why. For families, this likely meant feeding difficulties in infancy, speech differences later on, and visible facial changes that could shape daily life in powerful ways.
Across cultures and time periods, people tried to make sense of facial cleft in very different ways. Some early beliefs linked it to superstition or events during pregnancy, ideas that we now know were not accurate. Not every early description was complete, yet together they helped doctors gradually recognize that these were physical conditions present from birth, not something caused by anything a parent did wrong.
As medical science evolved, doctors began to describe facial cleft more carefully and to separate different types. Over time, it became clearer that a cleft lip is not the same as a cleft palate, and that some children are born with broader clefts involving the nose, jaw, or eye area. This mattered because the day-to-day needs can differ. One baby may mainly struggle with feeding, while another child may need more support with breathing, hearing, speech, or dental care.
Surgery changed the story in a major way. Early operations were limited and often risky, but techniques improved greatly over the 1800s and 1900s as anesthesia, infection control, and reconstructive surgery advanced. What once might have been a lifelong barrier to eating clearly or being understood in school could increasingly be treated in stages, often starting in infancy and continuing through childhood.
In recent decades, awareness has grown, and care for facial cleft has become more team-based. Surgeons, speech specialists, dentists, hearing experts, and feeding therapists now often work together, which reflects a better understanding of how facial cleft can affect more than appearance alone. Researchers later identified genetic and developmental factors in at least some cases, helping move the field away from blame and toward clearer, more compassionate care.
Knowing the condition’s history helps explain why treatment today is usually planned over time rather than in a single step. It also helps make sense of why early symptoms of facial cleft, such as trouble latching, milk coming through the nose, or later speech differences, are taken seriously and assessed early. For many families, that history is reassuring: medicine has learned a great deal, and outcomes have improved steadily.