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Fifteen children from different areas in the Far North region of Cameroon have been successfully operated of cleft lips.
These kids of between three months and five years can now put on attractive smiles following a free medical surgery at the Maroua regional hospital.
According to Dr. Djeukam Monkam Christian; one of the specialists in plastic surgery that participated in the exercise, children born of cleft lip represents 0.9% out of 1000 births. He adds that the Far North region of Cameroon remains one of the major areas where kids are born with cleft lips in sub Sahara Africa.
Based on believes of superstition and mysticism in the Far North region, babies with such congenital malformation are considered as witches and wizards and abandoned to their mothers. In this case, not only the babies are discriminated upon by their mothers.
With a successful surgery of fifteen of these babies, their mothers are particularly overwhelmed with joy.
According to one of them, “…we are very grateful for this medical assistance. At least we can move around with our babies without fear of shame and humiliation from those who considered us as outcast.”
With the assistance of some specialists from Yaounde in the surgery process, the Maroua regional hospital is now ready to henceforth handle such cases.
Mbatho Ntan.
