Incomplete Midline Cleft of Lower Lip

Abstract

Midline cleft of the lower lip is defined as a midline vertical cleft of the soft tissue of the lower lip. It may present with a midline cleft of the mandible. It may also be accompanied by other congenital anomalies such as a cleft tongue, ankyloglossia, a heart lesion, and absence of the hyoid bone. The etiologic cause is thought to be a failure of mesodermal penetration into the midline structures of the first branchial arch. This case report is on a female child who presented with an incomplete midline cleft of the soft tissue of the lower lip. It was surgically corrected with a vertical wedge excision and primary closure.