Operation Smile is an organization that allowes children born with a Cleft lip and/or palate a chance to get surgery they otherwise would not be able to afford.

What is a Clept lip and Palate? Information provided by marchofdimes.com

Cleft Lip and Cleft PalateA cleft is a separation in a body structure. Clefts that occur in the oral-facial region often involve the lip, the roof of the mouth (hard palate) or the soft tissue in the back of the mouth (soft palate). Two major types of oral-facial clefts are cleft lip/palate and isolated cleft palate. Babies with cleft lip/palate have a cleft lip which usually is accompanied by cleft palate. In isolated cleft palate, the cleft palate occurs by itself, without cleft lip or other malformations. These two forms of oral-facial clefts are considered separate birth defects. Here we refer to each specific type of cleft by name, and use the term oral-facial cleft when the information applies to both.There also are about 400 syndromes in which babies have some form of oral-facial cleft along with a wide variety of other birth defects. The diverse problems of these babies are not described here.When do oral-facial clefts develop, and how common are they?These separations normally are present in early fetal development. The lip usually closes by 5 to 6 weeks after conception, and the palate by 10 weeks. The lip or the lip and palate together fail to close in approximately 1 in every 1,000 babies born. Cleft lip/palate occurs more often among Asians (about 1.7 per 1,000 births) and among certain groups of American Indians (more than 3.6 per 1,000 births). It occurs less frequently among African-Americans (approximately 1 per 2,500 births). Males are affected more frequently than females.Cleft palate occurs alone less often, appearing in approximately 1 in 2,000 babies. Unlike the risk for cleft lip/palate, the risk for isolated cleft palate appears to be similar across all racial groups. Another difference from cleft lip/palate is that females are affected more often than males.What causes cleft lip/palate?The causes of cleft lip/palate are not well understood. Studies suggest that a number of genes, as well as environmental factors, such as drugs (including several different antiseizure drugs), infections, maternal illnesses, maternal smoking and alcohol use and, possibly, deficiency of the B vitamin folic acid may be involved.Cleft lip/palate may occur alone or with other abnormalities that may be hidden or obvious. Up to 13 percent of babies with cleft lip/palate have other birth defects. Some cases involve genetic syndromes which may pose specific problems for the baby, and may have a high risk of affecting others in the family. For this reason, babies with cleft lip/palate should be thoroughly examined by a doctor soon after birth.