A simple picture is worth a thousand words and in this case, so much more. At first glance, Jayleon White appears to be a normal, healthy boy. But when you look closer, you'll see his cleft lip and palate. Jayleon's lip and the roof of his mouth...
A simple picture is worth a thousand words and in this case, so much more. At first glance, Jayleon White appears to be a normal, healthy boy. But when you look closer, you'll see his cleft lip and palate. Jayleon's lip and the roof of his mouth never closed. His parents don't even notice. "He just looks like my baby pictures," say his parents Tiersa and Chaz. They accepted Jayleon the moment he was born.
A decade ago, only health care professionals could make heads or tails of an ultrasound. Now, three and four dimensional pictures provide us with our clearest view yet. "This should be one continuous structure here from the nose to the lateral segment of the lip," says Dr. Russell Reid. He is Jayleon's physician. "So, now, this is emerging as a way to give families the information they need before the child is born. Having knowledge beforehand reduces anxiety and that is critical," critical to bonding and moving ahead.
The alternative is learning right after you've given birth. "Generally, because there's no knowledge prenatally, the reactions can be within crisis proportions. Every year, nearly seven thousand parents bring their baby to an operating room just like this one to have the baby's lip and palate closed. For Jayleon's parents, he was their first baby, and knowing in advance gave them the chance to bond with the baby Jayleon is and not the one they had imagined in their head. You just want a healthy baby, a regular baby. So when something like this happens, it's just devastating."
The more they learned, the better they felt. Seeing pictures of children born with the same condition, a cleft lip and palate, before and after surgical reconstruction helped them too. "Knowing in advance got us ready for it. I was happy I found out way before. It helped me accept him more when he was born," say his parents. "Having cooperative parents ready and excited and eager to get their children taken care of, I think that optimizes our outcome."
Jayleon will need a series of surgeries, at least two to close his lip and palate. In preparation, he sees a team of specialists. One day, he'll probably need speech therapy. Also, right now Jayleon is unable to suck so he drinks from a special bottle, but the only thing his parents see is love. With knowledge comes confidence and grace. Jayleon's parents are grateful for their son. "In Jayleon's case, the future is bright and educating mom early was critical and we're excited to take care of Jayleon in the future." "I love him with all my heart. I wouldn't trade him for anything else," says Tiersa.
Learn More About Cleft Lip & Palate From the National Library of Medicine and the National Institute of Health
