Cleft lip and palate team
Since 1970 in Leuven children and young adults with a cleft lip and/or palate have been investigated and treated jointly by a team of different specialists who consult together to coordinate their care. This means that a patient with a cleft lip and/or palate is always considered from every possible perspective to ensure that the best treatments are offered in the most logical order. These are the members of the Leuven cleft lip and palate team.
Conservative dentistry
Antoon De Laat
Prof. dr. Antoon De Laat: conservative treatment under local and general anaesthetic
+32 16 33 24 54
antoon.delaat@uzleuven.be
Christine Vergalle
Ms. Christine Vergalle in the child dentistry department will check the children's teeth during the cleft lip and palate consultation. Since a healthy dental arch, free of decay, is vital in order to be able to carry out orthodontic and surgical corrections with good aesthetic results, prevention of caries (tooth decay) and gum disease is very important. If tooth decay is found, the dentist will discuss with the parents and their own dentist to find the best way of treating it.
+32 (0)16 33 24 60
christine.vergalle@uzleuven.be
Speech and language therapy
Mieke Breuls
Ms. Mieke Breuls provides support with feeding, speech and language. If there are any problems she can offer useful tips on how to feed your child from birth onwards. Later she will concentrate on your child's speech and language development and oral habits. If necessary speech and language therapy will be initiated, in consultation with the cleft lip and palate team. Speech and language therapy will be provided in your own area.
+32 (0)16 33 63 61
mieke.breuls@uzleuven.be
Ear, nose and throat conditions and face and neck surgery
Vincent Vander Poorten
Prof. Vincent Vander Poorten works with Prof. Schoenaers and Prof. Hens to carry out surgical repairs of the lip, alveolus and palate. If a problem still exists with open nasal speech at the age of about six due to the repaired palate not functioning properly, Prof. Vander Poorten will carry out a pharyngoplasty. He is also the coordinator of the Leuven cleft lip and palate team. You can contact him with any questions or suggestions you may have on improvements in cleft lip and palate consultations and treatments.
vincent.vanderpoorten@uzleuven.be
+32 (0)16 33 23 42
Greet Hens
Prof. Greet Hens works with Prof. Vander Poorten and Prof. Schoenaers to carry out surgical repairs of the lip, alveolus and palate. If a problem still exists with open nasal speech at the age of about six due to the repaired palate not functioning properly, Prof. Hens will carry out a pharyngoplasty. You can contact her with any questions or suggestions you may have on improvements in cleft lip and palate consultations and treatments.
+32 (0)16 33 23 42
greet.hens@uzleuven.be
Mark Jorissen
Prof. Mark Jorissen is an ENT surgeon and plastic surgeon, specialising in the nose. If an additional aesthetic correction to the nose is needed at age 18, he will carry this out.
+32 (0)16 33 23 42
mark.jorissen@uzleuven.be
Peter Hellings
Prof. Peter Hellings is an ENT surgeon and plastic surgeon, specialising in the nose. If an additional aesthetic correction to the nose is needed at age 18, he will carry this out.
+32 (0)16 33 23 42
peter.hellings@uzleuven.be
Christian Desloovere
Prof. Christian Desloovere is an ear surgeon and he is asked to help with birth defects including hearing difficulties (which are sometimes present when cleft lip and palate is part of a wider syndrome) or if problems occur with the eardrum (hole in the eardrum that needs surgical closure).
+32 (0)16 33 23 42
christian.desloovere@uzleuven.be
Human genetics
Koenraad Devriendt
Genetic advice can be provided by Prof. Koen Devriendt if there are questions about the cause of the cleft lip and palate, the risk of recurrence in other children in the family or in the patient's own children, or if cleft lip and palate occurs in the context of a wider syndrome.
See also: genetics of cleft lip and palate (pdf, 301 KB)
+32 (0)16 34 59 03
koenraad.devriendt@uzleuven.be
Mouth, jaw and facial surgery
Joseph Schoenaers
Prof. Joseph Schoenaers works with Prof. Vander Poorten to carry out surgical repairs of the lip, alveolus and palate. If the upper jaw is still relatively too small or too far backwards after puberty, Prof. Schoenaers may be able to carry out surgical jaw repositioning or enlargement.
+32 (0)16 33 24 62
joseph.schoenaers@uzleuven.be
Orthodontics
Carine Carels
Cleft lip and palate consultations take place in consultation with Prof. Carine Carels.
+32 (0)16 33 24 39
carine.carels@uzleuven.be
An Verdonck
Ms. A. Verdonck in the Department of Dentistry and Orthodontics will check the positioning of the children's teeth and jaws during the cleft lip and palate consultation. It is very important to achieve the best possible positioning of teeth and jaws to keep the teeth working well in later life.
+32 (0)16 33 25 58
an.verdonck@uzleuven.be
Paediatrics - neonatology
Maissa Rayyan
+32 (0)16 343850
maissa.rayyan@uzleuven.be
Radiology
Robert Hermans
Prof. Bob [Robert] Hermans is a radiologist and will carry out video pharyngography if this is needed. He is sometimes also asked to help with imaging of the facial skeleton.
+32 (0)16 34 37 81
Robert.Hermans@uzleuven.be
Psychology
Yasmine Antonis
You can contact Ms. Yasmine Antonis, the team's psychologist, if you have any questions or uncertainties related to bringing up your child. It is also possible that your child may experience some problems during his/her social and emotional development. In that case she can work with you as a psychologist to see how you can offer the best possible help to your child.
+32 (0)16 33 63 67
yasmine.antonis@uzleuven.be
Dermatology
Maggi Exelmans
As a beauty specialist she can offer patients simple tips to accentuate the more attractive aspects of their face and make any imperfections less noticeable. Girls during puberty can feel particularly insecure about their appearance if it does not fit the ideal image, and this is all the more true for cleft lip and palate patients. By learning to use make-up, patients can learn to view their own face in a more positive way.
Maggi.Exelmans@uzleuven.be
Administrative support
Nicole Iwens
Ms. Nicole Iwens is responsible for the administrative management of the cleft lip and palate team. She makes appointments for consultations and handles all telephone contacts with patients and team members. You can contact her with any question at all. (She will put you into contact with the person in the team who is best placed to answer your question.) Tel. +32 (0)16 33 23 28 (Mon, Tue, Thu between 08.00 and 16.30) - Fax +32 (0)16 33 23 35
+32 (0)16 33 23 28
schisisteam@uzleuven.be
Social services
Liesbeth Vansantvoet
Ms. Liesbetg Vansantvoet helps to provide psychosocial guidance for young patients and those close to them when they face changes and limitations resulting from cleft lip and palate and its treatment. She will try to support the process of coping with these issues and optimise the patient's home environment, taking into account the personal, family and social context. Ms Vansantvoet also provides information if there are questions about social, administrative and financial help (e.g. child benefit; McDonald Fund). To that end she works with other providers both at the hospital (e.g. the psychologist in the cleft lip and palate team, social assistants in paediatric medicine) and outside (e.g. social assistants from your Health Insurance Fund).
+32 (0)16 33 63 68
liesbeth.vansantvoet@uzleuven.be
Nurse
Ms. A. Vander Weyden is responsible for managing files for consultations and for welcoming patients and their parents. During the consultation she is responsible for coordination between the patient and the other members of the cleft lip and palate team, for example with the audiometrist, the speech and language therapist and the staff carrying out X-ray tests. She makes appointments and provides additional explanations and information.
agnes.vanderweyden@uzleuven.be
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