Today, the nonprofit Operation Smile sends teams to 20 countries in five continents. Last year, Operation Smile supported 37 medical missions, which resulted in nearly 6,000 corrective surgeries. Over the years, the organization has given new life to more than 50,000 children. “But we’re still forced to turn away two out of three who need our help,” Magee says.
Clefts and More
“Young children with cleft lips are our first priority,” says Jan Lalonde. “They are the most visually obvious and take only about 45 minutes to surgically correct. “Cleft palates, which take about two hours, come next. If there’s time left, the team operates on children with other deformities, such as facial cancers and burns.
Clefts are openings that occur when the developing neural tube doesn’t close correctly. One of 500 children is born with clefts in developing countries. Often considered “cursed,” many of these children are social outcasts and hidden away. These birth defects aren’t limited to developing countries. In the United States, one of 800 children is afflicted.
“The causes are both genetic and environmental,” Magee notes. “When we analyzed the DNA of thousands of these kids in Columbia and the Philippines, we found vitamin B-6 and folic acid deficiencies. The diet of the mother definitely makes a difference.”
In Canada, where health insurance is universal, these defects are routinely corrected soon after birth. But because many remain uninsured In the United States, Operation Smile performs screening and surgery in major American cities every year.
