Fortis announces free consultation camp for children born with cleft lip and cleft palate deformities

Free of cost surgeries for the underprivileged children born with cleft defects

To support children born with cleft lip and cleft palate deformities Fortis Escorts Hospital, Jaipur in collaboration with Fortis Foundation, today announced, free consultation camp for the children from the under privileged families.

The camp will be organized on 27^th April, 2017 from 9.00 – 3.00 pm at Fortis Escorts Hospital, Jaipur under the able stewardship of Dr. Sandeepan Mukul, Director, Plastic and cosmetic surgery, Fortis Escorts Hospital, Jaipur who has over 21 years of experience in plastic and cosmetic treatments.

 “Statistics show that, in India, more than 35,000 children are born each year with Cleft Lip and Cleft Palate deformities. Out of every 500 children in India, one child is born with these problems. With only 2000 plastic surgeons in India and even lesser number of surgeons trained for these surgeries, less than 50% of the patients are treated. Many parents are unaware that Cleft lip/ palate is completely treatable with a surgery or sometimes they are unable to afford the treatment’ says Dr Sandeepan Mukul.

Though, no socio-economic class is immune to this problem, the problem occurs in lower strata of the society more as lower nutrition in mothers could lead to such congenital deformities in children. Due to this problem, feeding in children is seriously affected as they are unable to suckle on mother’s breast and respond poorly to any kind of feeding. Not only does it lead to malnutrition, but it also leads to speech difficulties. The deformities are so grotesque that the child faces abusive attention from peers and becomes unsocial. Often, it is seen patients of cleft lip more traumatized by their social circle, than the physical problem itself,” he highlighted.

Taking cognizance of the underlying problems associated with maxillofacial deformities like cleft lip and cleft palate, Fortis foundation took up the cause. In this camp, free consultation will be given to children with cleft deformities by Fortis doctors. The camp is being held in collaboration with Fortis Foundation’s Umeed- Smile initiative.

Fortis Escorts Hospital, Jaipur has developed a comprehensive cleft center where specialists including dentists, nutritionist, speech therapist, and pediatrician will treat these children.

Mr Jasbir Grewal, Head, Fortis Foundation said, “Many children are deprived of the opportunity to access proper medical aid at an early stage due to lack of resources and knowledge on the part of their care givers. Timely and correct detection can enable a child to live a healthy and full life. We at Fortis Foundation are also supporting the treatment of the children with cleft lip/palate deformities at two other centers -Ludhiana and NCR under the Umeed –Smile initiative.”

Highlighting the importance of comprehensive treatment for these children, Dr. Shrikant Swami, Medical Director, Fortis Escorts Hospital Jaipur said, “Cleft Lip or Cleft Palate is not just a problem of lip and palate. With time, in these patients, the nose can become deviated and lead to respiratory problems or poorly developed jaw can lead to facial disfigurements.

While sharing his opinion on the occasion, Mr. Prateem Tamboli, Zonal Director, Fortis Escorts Hospitals, Jaipur, said “Responsibility towards our community is an integral part of most of our endeavours. We are constantly working on increasing the healthcare accessibility and uplifting social environment with various initiatives like morning park camps for health-conscious citizens, health awareness camps for community & private sector companies, Basic Life Support trainings for police constables, traffic police and auto rickshaw driver. We have specially focused on the development of the health of Women & Child through our initiatives like ‘Nanhi Chaan’, that celebrate birth of girl child & spread environment awareness.

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