Meet the Boston Cleft and Craniofacial Team

An Approved Team of the American Cleft Palate Craniofacial Association 

Orofacial clefts, including cleft lips and cleft palates, are among the most common congenital malformations. According to the American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association (ACPA), approximately 7,000 babies in the U.S. are born with a cleft lip and/or palate every year. Cleft lip and cleft palate occur when a baby’s lip or mouth does not form properly during pregnancy. At Shriners Children’s Boston, families have access to world-class care at the Cleft and Craniofacial Center, a collaboration with MassGeneral Hospital for Children. The staff members of the Cleft and Craniofacial Center are members of an ACPA Approved Team.

A Multidisciplinary Team

“Shriners Children’s is a wonderful healthcare system and the care we provide is exceptional, not just from a surgical standpoint, but also from a comprehensive, multidisciplinary standpoint,” said Kavitha Ranganathan, M.D., the co-director of the Cleft and Craniofacial Center.

Due to the complexity of cleft care, specialists from numerous health disciplines are involved in these cases. At the Cleft and Craniofacial Center, families meet their ACPA Approved Team, which includes their child’s plastic surgeon, orthodontist, psychiatrist, nurse care manager, speech therapist and nutritionist – all during the initial consult. This team approach continues throughout a patient’s entire course of treatment, and ensures the best outcome for each child and family.

Care Throughout Childhood

The Cleft and Craniofacial care team develops a treatment plan that follows each patient through the age of 18. “Care routinely extends beyond the initial cleft lip or palate repair,” said Dr. Ranganathan. “It is important that we understand the needs of our patients not just in infancy but as they grow into adulthood.”

Driving Innovation

The Shriners Children's Boston staff doesn’t just do clinical care; the hospital also boasts a robust, world-class research network that allows providers to treat extremely rare craniofacial conditions and study them in real time.