This book, the successor to Advances in the Management of Cleft Palate edited by Margaret Edwards and Tony Watson and published in 1980 but it is different enough for its publishers and editors to feel that its name should be changed. The aim of this present book is to provide an up-to-date review of all aspects of the management of clefts. There are an increased number of chapters and the contributors represent a wider range of professions associated with the care of cleft lip and palate. There are new chapters on genetics, associated conditions and syndromes. The contents are as follows: the Nature of Cleft Lip and Palate; embryology, incidence and aetiology; Classification: anatomy and function; facial growth; speech characteristics cleft condition; associated conditions and syndromes; management of the Infant and Young Child with a Cleft Lip and/or Palate; prenatal diagnosis - abnormalities of the fetal lip and palate; prenatal, perinatal and postnatal counselling; the role of the paediatrician; early feeding management; presurgical orthopaedics; primary surgery and nursing care; speech development and early intervention. Hearing and ENT management: management of the older child, adolescent and adult; speech assessment and therapy; assessment and surgical management of velopharyngeal function; secondary surgery of lip and nose deformities and palatal fistulae; Orthodontics; alveolar bone grafting; Orthognathic surgery; Restorative dental treatment; Growing up with a cleft: the impact on the child; role of parent support groups; and choosing the best treatment for the child with a cleft.