PESHAWAR, May 23: Having recently received a grant from a US-based organisation, the Hyatabad Medical Complex (HMC) now offers free cleft lip and palate corrective surgeries.

The hospital received a $5,000 grant to be utilised for the purpose from an international organisation named The Smile Train.

Each surgery costs Rs6,000 and so far, the hospital has carried out 20 successful surgeries on 20 children. Since 1999, the Smile Train has enabled more than 180,000 children in 60 developing countries to get free cleft lip and palate surgeries.

Talking to Dawn, Dr Tehmeedullah, the Assistant Professor at the Plastic Surgery Unit of the HMC and the Director of the Cleft Lip Programme, said that exact causes of this abnormality were not yet known, but involvement of factors such as malnutrition or a poor diet during pregnancy was certain.

Talking about how children and even adults with this abnormality face social ridicule and embarrassment, he urged people to “restore their smiles” through this simple, one-time operation.

He said the Chief Executive of the HMC and the Head of the Plastic Surgery Unit, Dr Tahir Mohammad, was doing his best to make the programme a success but people were not availing of the free facility because of a lack of awareness.

He said that one in 750 live births suffered from the condition across the world, but in Pakistan the incidence was of one in 500 live births.