FaceFormer® Feedback

Cleft lip and palate – consistent FaceFormer training pays off

My son (9 years old) was born with a left-sided cleft lip and palate. CMD also quickly manifested itself. His mouth was constantly open, his tongue hung limply out of his mouth, resulting in constant salivation and very poor speech quality. The jaw misalignment was pre-programmed. At the same time, he had a constant cold and, without a tympanostomy tube, new effusions quickly developed in his middle ear. This was a consequence of the anatomical anomaly but also due to the complete lack of nasal breathing. Despite conventional, consistent speech therapy, there was little or no success.

The change to ISST Berndsen at the age of 3 was the turning point. Establishing the FaceFormer day and night and consistently performing exercises 3 times a day under Dr Berndsen’s guidance showed significant improvement after just a few months, especially in speech quality. The salivating also quickly came to an end. The exercises continue to this day, but they are integrated into everyday life and my son now does them almost independently. Even a major speech-improving operation was averted thanks to the consistent use of the FaceFormer and the exercises.

Conclusion: If we had known earlier that the FaceFormer and the ISST existed, we would have decided to use them straight after the birth. It is certainly not always easy to practise consistently with a (small) child, but it pays off. Many thanks to Dr Berndsen and the whole team for their patience and highly competent care. If you don’t know our son’s history, you won’t recognise it, not least because of the scientifically founded concept behind the FaceFormer.

Family B. from the HSK