Feeding your baby after CLEFT LIP repair

							                             Feeding your baby after
                                   CLEFT LIP repair
Cleft lip repair occurs at approximately 3-4   Some babies benefit from thickening their
months of age. Hospital stay is usually        formula after surgery. You can use baby
between 1-3 nights. One parent may sleep       custard or Karicare food thickener.
at the baby’s bedside.
                                               You may return to your usual method of
After cleft lip repair your child will have    feeding after two weeks.
special feeding needs to allow time for
healing.                                       Arm splints must be worn for two weeks
                                               after surgery, to prevent your baby putting
Our plastic surgeons Dr Theile,                anything in his/her mouth.
Dr Richardson Dr Broadhurst and Dr Goh
request no sucking after surgery, to aid       If your baby has nose stents these will
wound healing.                                 need to be worn for three months.

This means NO dummies either.                  Equipment is available from Cleft Pals:
                                               Arm splints from Wendy Sparling on (07)
We advise trialling alternative methods        3341 5627
of feeding approximately 4 weeks prior
to surgery so you and your baby are            Feeding Equipment from Rachel McGuren
prepared.                                      and Marc Hill on (07) 3293 2580;
                                               0416611290
If you are breast feeding, you can continue
to breast feed after surgery, as long as no    Lip sutures (stitches) are removed under
palate surgery has been attempted.             a general anaesthetic one week after
                                               surgery.
If you are bottle feeding before surgery,
we recommended using a squeeze bottle          If you have any queries about feeding your
with a “witch’s hat teat” after surgery.       baby after cleft lip surgery, please contact
                                               the Speech Pathologists on 3636 8508.

                                                       publications/fact sheets/Speech/Feeding your baby after cleft lip
                                                       repair 11.01.10