Craniofacial Center The team concept The Craniofacial Center at Children’s Hospital New Orleans is dedicated to providing holistic, coordinated, state-of-the-art care to children with craniofacial differences. All team members specialize in complexities of caring for children with clefts and other craniofacial conditions.

Children with clefts and craniofacial differences thrive best when cared for by specialists from many different disciplines. The team approach ensures that healthcare providers work together to implement a single, coordinated, and patient-centered treatment plan unique to your child. Craniofacial Center

Craniofacial Pediatrics Genetics Otolaryngology The craniofacial pediatrician will Many babies with craniofacial Our otolaryngologists are surgeons diagnose your child and manage conditions have “isolated” problems with expertise in treating disorders medical problems related to that do not affect their general of the head, , ears, nose and their craniofacial differences. The health. The geneticist identifies throat in children of all ages. They physician guides your child’s overall those few patients who may have a assess and monitor your child’s treatment and works with other more complicated genetic condition hearing, ears, feeding, breathing team members to coordinate associated with other medical and speech development. specialty care. Your craniofacial problems and/or family history. They pediatrician will be familiar with all can advise you about the pros and Neurosurgery aspects of your child’s condition and cons of genetic testing, counsel the Neurosurgeons specialize in treating with your family’s needs and desires. family, and give information about children with abnormalities of the The craniofacial pediatrician will the prognosis and recurrence risks. brain and . Our neurosurgeons work with your family’s physician to work closely with our plastic and monitor your child’s overall health Nursing reconstructive surgeons to treat and development. The nurse coordinator helps the children with craniofacial conditions family with specialized education that involve the skull and spine. Plastic/Reconstructive and regarding the nature of the child’s Craniofacial medical diagnosis. They help Social Services Our plastic surgeons are fellowship- coordinate your child’s care and Our social workers help throughout trained in craniofacial surgery. They facilitate communication among your child’s care. They provide specialize in the surgical treatment the care team members and with support and information about your of craniofacial differences. They your family. They have a thorough child’s diagnosis and the impact a perform plastic and reconstructive understanding of your child’s craniofacial difference may have on surgery on both soft tissue in the condition and can answer questions your family. They assist with helping and the bones of the face and and offer advice throughout their you find community resources, skull. In patients with craniofacial life, including feeding your newborn. alternative resources for financial anomalies, are timed to They teach you about your child’s assistance, family support groups, optimize physical appearance, disorder and treatment. Nurses and can facilitate family-to-family social adjustment, brain growth and help you prepare for surgery and connections. development, and facial growth. understand the care needed after surgery. Speech Pathology Audiology Craniofacial differences, including Children with craniofacial conditions Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery cleft palate, may contribute to are more likely to have ear and Oral and maxillofacial surgeons speech problems. Our speech hearing problems. Untreated specialize in procedures to treat pathologists assess and monitor hearing loss can lead to problems the jaw, teeth and lower face. The your child’s speech development with speech and language goals are to create facial symmetry, throughout childhood to determine development, emotional and social properly align the jaws and ensure how to improve their speech development, and learning. Our proper placement of your child’s skills. They provide the family audiologists will check your child’s teeth. They work closely with our with suggestions for facilitating hearing throughout childhood, other surgeons, dentists, and normal speech and language in starting as early as one week old. orthodontists to maximize growth the home and provide diagnosis potential, establish a functional bite, and therapeutic intervention when Dentistry and normalize facial appearance. indicated. Children with craniofacial conditions may be at higher risk for dental Orthodontics abnormalities or problems like Many craniofacial conditions, cavities. Our pediatric dentist including cleft lip and palate, can monitors the patient’s dental needs, cause disturbance in the jaw’s growth and development as the normal growth, development, teeth erupt and mature. Healthy and positioning. The orthodontist To contact the Children’s teeth and gums are very important monitors this progress and often Hospital New Orleans for all children, and our pediatric uses appliances or braces to guide Craniofacial Center please dentist can help provide care the movement of both jaws during specific to children with special facial growth. call 504.896.9857 or visit healthcare needs. chnola.org/craniofacial-center.

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