Possible Cleft Lip

Hi Susan!
I have a daughter who was born with a cleft lip. They had "discovered" it during an ultrasound. For some reason, I really took it hard---mostly of the unknown, or probably knowing too much about it (my husband is a doctor). I always just pictured having everything go as "normal" as possible. I cried almost every night worried mostly for my daughter and what she had to go through (surgeries, pain, etc...). Of course I was so anxious to see what she would look like when she was born.
Looking back at it now, I really spent too much time being anxious, nervous about it that I really didnt get to enjoy the blessings of being pregnant. My daughter who is now 2 is as beautiful and healthy as any 2 yr old. I would just wait until you really find out, and really enjoy every moment of your pregnancy especially since it's your first. In the end, everything will work out just fine. You will love your child no matter what. I hope this helps!

We had the 2 vessel umbilical cord issue - and there have been no problems! Of course, we were worried that something would be wrong with our baby's heart - but good news - everything is OK! Good luck to you.

Hi Susan,

I have a wonderful 3-year-old little boy who was born with cleft lip and palate. We were not fortunate enough to find out prior to his birth, so it was a delivery room surprise for me and my husband. I was very scared at first because I really didn't know anything about clefts. Of course it is overwhelming to think that your precious baby is going to have to have surgery when he is so tiny, but in reality the anticipation of the surgery was much worse than the actual surgery and recovery itself. Today my son is a completely normal 3-year-old. He is in speech therapy, but he is doing so well that he will probably "graduate" from speech very soon. I would love to talk with you more to answer any questions you might have. As a mom who has been there done that, I might be able to help you along the path ahead or at least be there for you to talk to if you need it. I have found two wonderful women who also have small children with clefts and it has been so amazing for us to be able to support one another. Sometimes it's nice to have someone to talk to who knows what you're going through because they've walked the same path themselves. Please feel free to contact me if you want to talk further.

C.

I was told that my son had a possible cleft lip, but when they did the level 2, they found that it must have been a shadow on the first ultrasound, or that his head was turned just wrong to show that. As far as the umbilical cord, there was a girl that I work with had the same thing. Her doctor just monitored her a lot more closely. Her doctor ended up scheduling her to be induced when she was 36 weeks (considered full-term) due to one of the tests came back that the fluid levels were dropping and that the cord was starting to shut down. Well, the day before she was to go into the hospital, Mother Nature took over and knew what to do. She now has a very, very healthy baby boy, he is almost 8 months old, and as far as they can tell, he doesn't have any complications from the umbilical cord stress. So, to make a longer story short, you are doing great by not worrying too much, worrying will only make it worse. You will probably just need to be watched closer than other women, and if you have a great doctor, they will take care of you and your son and everything will be just fine. Good luck and God bless. Oh, yeah, and CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Please get the second ultra sound. I had my 3rd child 16 years ago and the ultra sound tech told me that my baby girl had no brain and that I needed to abort the pregnacy. After the second ultra sound everything was fine. I can tell you this I wish I could meet that tech today and tell him that my child without a brain is a "B" student in high school. Don't believe everything you hear or see at this time it's only 20 weeks. I know that technology has advanced in the last 16 years but do yourself a favor and get the 2nd ultra sound.

Hi Susan,

When I was pregnant with our first child we were told that she could possibly have Downs Syndrome and that she only had 2 vessels vs. 3. We were told to be prepared for a very small premie size baby since she would only be getting nutrients from 1 vessel instead of 2. It was really all out of my hands what the outcome would be so my husband and I decided that whatever happened we would love out little girl no matter what. Well imagine the doctors surprise when our baby was born with no down syndrome and topped the scales at 9lb 6.5oz!!! I remember in the delivery room the surprise by all and one of the nurses asking for a size 1 diaper because the one the planned on using was way to small. I'm glad that I decided to enjoy my pregnacy instead of worrying about something I couldn't change. Congratulations and enjoy being pregnant--I loved it.

We were told about 2 weeks ago that our baby (21 weeks pg at the time) had a 2 vessel cord (aka SUA-single umbilical artery). We were sent to the perinatalogist to evaluate things further. At the Level 2 sonogram they will investigate everything. I am sure they will look at the possible cleft lip, and they will especially concentrate on the kidneys and heart. Those are the 2 major organs that can be affected by this condition. During the sonogram we were surprised by the this situation--the nurse went thru a "check list" out loud w/ the perinatologist. She would say outloud, "Brain present" and he'd respond, "Check", they went thru all major organs. I started feeling really faint b/c he wasn't able to see everything in the heart for a long time. We are going to have to go back for monthly sonograms, and our OB wants us to go in for twice-a-week non-stress tests at 28 weeks to make sure baby is healthy. Another possible problem with SUA is that the babies weight can be stunted, which could cause problems. They will probably just monitor you more closely and make sure you are aware of everything. The docs want to make sure you do what you can to keep on top of things. If your OB sent you in for a Level 2, then he/she is just being cautious and watching out for your/babies best interest. Like another person commented, it is out of our hands. I worried at first, and am still a little concerned, but I know that stressing myself out will only harm, not help, my little one. Don't hesitate to ask the docs if you have ???'s and don't look up too much info online, it will scare you for sure! March of Dimes website does a pretty good job of explaining things in terms of understanding. Do enjoy your pregnancy, knowing your are having a boy, and the relationship between you and hubby. Congrats, and best wishes!! If you are a God-fearing person, just ask for prayers. My prayers will be with you as they are with my sweet little baby.

Steph

I don't have any experience with cleft lips, but my first son had a two vessel umbilical cord. At my level 2 ultrasound, they said this is actually more common than we hear, occurring in about 20% of pregnancies. Also, the two vessels get bigger to accommodate the increased flow, so it doesn't mean the baby won't be getting the nutrients he needs. I don't know anyone who got an accurate estimate of birth weight from an ultrasound, so don't worry about that at all. Lastly, my second son had a three vessel cord, so it doesn't mean all of your babies will only have two vessel cords.

I hate to tell you but if the Umbilical Cord has only 2 vessels instead of 3 it usually means Downs Syndrome. You may ask your doctor about this.

my 2nd child was born with a cleft lip.We didnt know untill the day he was born.They didnt see it in the ultrasound. He is 3 yr old little boy know and they is a little scar but you dont even notice it. He only had a cleft lip so it didnt effect his speech at all. I do feel that the techs should not say anything like that unless they know for sure!! Your only in your 20th week. for me thats all I would be thinking about for the next 20 weeks. I know you said you wont worry about it and thats a good way to be, just enjoy being pregnant!!!! your little baby will be perfect!!

First of all, Susan, congratulations on your bundle of joy. I had a son born mid-March of 2008. He is so sweet!!

I would wait until they do that repeat ultrasound. Like you stated in your post, it may be nothing. I know it is easy to SAY not to worry. But, try to stay relaxed and continue enjoying being pregnant. I have not had any experience personally with either scenario, but I do know a couple of people that have had "abnormal" ultrasounds, intially, that turned out to be nothing on second look.

Best wishes!!

I personally think many "techs" should have duct tape on their mouth.

I was told in my ultrasound I was having twin boys.

I had one healthy girl.

Back then women were only allowed 2 ultrasounds...and none of these newer better ones...so I went thru my entire pregnancy, with all blue clothes, a blue nursery, and had stockpiled premie sized everything.

One girl.

I had one girl, dressed in blue for months.

Honestly, it's so easy for all of us on the other side to say to you "don't worry, don't worry"...but you're in the middle of this horrible unknown, and it's nightmarish!

Try to be quiet, calm, do you meditate? Do you do yoga? I suggest taking them up and visualize your healthy and happy child, and concentrate on how happy you are right now to shelter and host this new life. TRY to just enjoy what you have right now.

You have no control over the outcome, but don't waste this time worrying about something that honestly, in all likelihood isn't even accurate information!

We also had a 2 vessel umbilical cord issue. We went in for our 20 week ultra-sound and were thrilled to be having a boy. When our mid-wife was going over the results of the ultra-sound she told us about the 2 vessel umbilical. She didn't act like it was a big deal, just told us that we would need to see a perinatalogist for a second opinion. I had no clue what the 2 vessel umbilical meant. I had to wait 2 weeks to get into the specialist. My husband and i had no idea what to expect. i ended up at the appointment by myself (husband couldn't miss work again), and was extremely nervous. The nurse asked me if i understood the 2 vessel umbilical and what the possible complications could be. I didn't have a clue, and when she started to list all the possible issues my baby could have, i started to panic. In our case, the ultra sound showed that we had a perfectly healthy baby. Please do not stress over this. Do see a specialist to get a second opinion. I had ultra-sounds every few weeks to monitor my baby, and then had non-stress tests closer to my due date (my baby was breech the entire pregnancy). The ultra sounds estimated that my baby was 7-8 pounds. I ended up having him at 37 weeks due to low fluid level. He was 5 lbs 11 oz when he was born. We have a perfectly healthy baby boy. Please do not stress too much! Enjoy your pregnancy and remember what a blessing this baby will be.

Hi Susan - I am a speech and language therapist. I promise you that all will be well. As you said a cleft lip can be repaired by surgery, which can be done very early. The baby may have trouble sucking, because the circle of the lips is not complete, however there are adaptive devices that you can use until the surgery is done. If you want to talk more about this, please write me privately and we can exchange phone numbers. The St. Louis Area has amazing teams of Doctors who deal with Cleft lip and Palate. You could not be in a better place for your baby and you to get any and all help you need. Sincerely, G.