Kathleen,
I routinely do a suck assessment on every baby that I see for an official
consult. Many times I may detect a deviation from the standard smooth
sloping palate, but I don't always tag it as a problem, I just note it. I
have had "bubble palates" that were not integral to the problem, and I
have seen those that were. The actual complaint must be weighed against
the findings before significance can be attached. Meanwhile, it is amazing
the differences there are in neonatal oral cavities! I find it beneficial when
devising a treatment strategy to understand all of the possible factors
involved in the problem, otherwise one may be casting in the dark. Even with
this info, it can still be a "crapshoot" sometimes!  ;-) (Let's be honest)

I do also think that genetics, and our extremely mixed genetic pool, play
into this a lot; you can get a lot of interesting combinations, and why
should we expect every mother/baby fit to work smoothly when there are
truly many physical differences among the races? It is my suspicion that
some of you are highly skilled at working with these problems though they
are not identified in the same way. Others of us use these definitions to
develop our approach to the problem. And then there are a few who don't
fall into either category who don't understand what's going on or what to
do about it. I would rather be in the first two categories, than the
third! Meanwhile, I look forward to and eagerly enjoy hearing all of the
various ways that everyone else approaches problems. There is always more
to learn, skills to improve on.

-Lisa



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Lisa A. Marasco, IBCLC                                /  [log in to unmask]
International Board Certified Lactation Consultant    /  [log in to unmask]

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