Illinois Cleft Teams
If you’re searching for a cleft team in Illinois for your child, here is a list of hospitals, teams, surgeons and their specific techniques. This list has been compiled by other mommies, so if you don’t see your team here, we will be happy to add it for you.
Chicago IL Cleft Teams
- Dr. Julia Corcoran
- Lip Adhesion or no pre-surgical technique prior to repair
- Lip Repair done at 3 months/palate repair done at 9 months
- Restrictions & Requirements after repair include: No bottles, no pacifiers, use of arm restraints, scar cream and scar massage
- Speech therapy begins at 10 months
- Gum bone graft – 5-6 years Nose revision – high school, if desired by patient
*We researched all of the cleft teams in our area. Our results are excellent.
*Dr. Corcoran is not a huggy, everyone feel good surgeon. But she tells it exactly how it is, she is brilliant, and she is pragmatic. She has never given false expectations and I trust her completely.
*I had high(ish) expectations. I saw a lot of before and after pictures, and I was not optimistic. Dr. Corcoran’s work has far surpassed my expectations. I consider this surgery successful if people cannot tell why he has a scar. That has happened a number of times. I still think we have work to do (again, high expectations, Finn’s lip was not severe, his palate was), but this initial round has gone really well.
- Dr. Arun Gosain
- This surgeon uses the NAM or taping prior to repair
- Lip Repair done between 3-6 months/palate repair done between 11-12 months
- Restrictions & Requirements after repair include: Nose stents and scar massage
- Speech therapy begins at 8 months (as needed)
- Lip/nose revision around age 5. Bone graft around age 9
No comments on surgeon
- Dr. Bruce Bauer
- No pre-surgical technique prior to lip repair
- Lip Repair done at 3 months/palate repair done at 12 months
- Restrictions & Requirements after repair include: No bottles, no pacifiers, use of arm restraints, and scar massage
- bone graft in first year in some cases if warranted
*We interviewed all the Chicago cleft teams and feel we made the right choice with Dr Bauer. He is clearly one of the leading international experts. He ran the Lurie/Children’s department of plastic surgery for decades. We chose him because he is so extremely credentialed and experienced in these surgeries. Unlike Shriner’s, Dr Bauer performs the surgeries himself (at Shriners, they have a Resident who performs the surgery). I will say the quality of Highland Park Hospital waiting rooms / overall facilities were disappointing and I feel we don’t get the same level of full team support with North Shore than we would have had at Shriner’s (especially with speech therapy), but the MOST important thing for us was our son’s surgery outcomes, and so we made our decision based on who we wanted the surgeon to be. We have been very happy with our choice and our son’s wonderful outcomes on his lip and palate repair.
- Dr. Mitchell Grasseschi
- Taping prior to lip repair
- Lip Repair done at 10 weeks (10lbs)/palate repair done between 9-12 months
- Restrictions & Requirements after repair include: No Bottles, no pacifiers, use of arm restraints, scar cream and scar massage.
- Lip/nose revision – 4-5 yrs old Gumline bone graft – 7-8 yrs old
*They always go above and beyond to make sure we are taken care of and that we understand what is going to happen
*He has done a beautiful job with both repairs, tells us what/how he is going to do things
*They help us with lodging and travel expenses. We also haven’t had to pay a single cent for surgeries. They keep our insurance on file and bill certain things to get reimbursed, but we’ve never had to pay or seen a bill.
- Dr. David Morris, MD
- Taping prior to lip repair
- Lip Repair done at 3 months/palate repair done between 10-13 months
- Restrictions & Requirements after repair include: No Bottles, no pacifiers, use of arm restraints, nose stents, scar cream and scar massage.
- Additional procedures may include: Nose revision; 4-5 years, Bone graft; 7-10 years, Nose revision; 16-18 years
*”This team has worked together for 16+ years! Teaching hospital. Great care, wonderful results! We travel from out of state. Contact over phone and email are always quick and easy!”
- Dr. Russell Reid
- NAM and/or Taping prior to lip repair
- Lip Repair done at 3 months/palate repair done at 10 months
- Restrictions & Requirements after repair include: No Bottles, no pacifiers, use of arm restraints, scar cream and scar massage.
- Speech therapy begins at 6 months
*No Reviews.
Springfield IL Cleft Teams
- Dr. Reuben Bueno
- No pre-surgical technique
- Lip Repair done at 3 months/palate repair done at 12 months
- Restrictions & Requirements after repair include: No bottles, no pacifiers, and use of arm restraints
No reviews at this moment
Urbana IL Cleft Teams
- Dr. Jonathan Bailey
- No pre-surgical technique
- Lip Repair done at 3 months/palate repair done at 12 months
- Restrictions & Requirements after repair include: Nose Stents, and recommends scar massage
- Speech therapy begins at the first team visit, around 18 months
- Additional surgeries might include bone graft, depending on tooth development
*”We have had a great experience with the entire team with both of my cleft children. The surgeon did a beautiful job and my oldest son has started orthodontics and we’ve had a great experience so far. I’ve never felt rushed by any of them, they take time to explain how we can understand and seem to genuinely care. Both my children just had lip and alveolar clefts…so I dont have info to share in regards to palate repair.”
