Babies with a cleft lip

A baby with an isolated cleft lip can usually breast feed.  Sometimes there is difficulty in forming a seal between the breast and lip but the breast tissue can usually mould into the gap.  A hissing sound usually means air is entering the mouth so try to reposition your baby into a better position.  To maintain the position of the nipple onto the back of the tongue it may be useful to help your baby by holding the breast into the mouth.  Small changes in the vacuum will result in the nipple slowly moving towards the front of the mouth, causing nipple pain and ineffective feeding.  You may need to try your baby in different positions and seek support from those experienced with breast feeding children with clefts.

Babies with cleft palate or cleft lip and palate

A cleft of the palate means that your baby may have difficulty in sucking effectively as he or she is unable to create a good vacuum inside the mouth.

Babies born with a cleft palate only may be more difficult to feed than those born with a cleft lip or cleft lfip and palate.

Occassionaly, it may be necessary to use a combination of naso-gastric tube feeding and/or bottle feeding during the first 4 months following birth.

Breastfeeding directly from the breast is difficult where there is a cleft of the palate but remember breast milk feeding is still considered as breast feeding. A good flow of breast milk is essential for successful breast/breast milk feeding and this can be encouraged by regular feeding or frequent 3-4 hourly use of a breast pump.  You should be offered the free loan of a breast pump by your team to support expression if your baby is unable to feed directly from the breast.