Clefts

Our Experts

At the Center for Craniofacial Anomalies at UCSF, a team of specialists, not one individual clinician, examines and develops a treatment plan for each patient. Our philosophy, which is shared by the American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association, equips us to take a holistic approach to the physical and emotional needs of our patients and their families. The skills of experts from several disciplines are needed to provide a thorough, comprehensive evaluation and treatment plan for each patient.

Doctors

• Dr. Radhika Chigurupati, oral and maxillofacial surgeon

• Dr. Ilona J Frieden, director of Pediatric Dermatology

• Dr. Nalin Gupta, chief of Pediatric Neurological Surgery

• Dr. William Y Hoffman, chief of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery

• Dr. Ophir D. Klein, craniofacial anomalies specialist

• Dr. Janice S Lee, oral and maxillofacial surgeon

• Dr. John McQuitty, pediatric pulmonologist

• Dr. Kristina W. Rosbe, pediatric head and neck surgeon

• Dr. Anne M. Slavotinek, geneticist

• Dr. Karin Vargervik, orthodontist, Craniofacial Team Director

Nurses

Anne Boekelheide has been a nurse at UCSF for more than 30 years and a member of the Center for Craniofacial Anomalies since 1989. Her special interest is in feeding and breathing issues in newborns with craniofacial conditions.

Boekeleide is active in the American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association and has lectured at numerous training courses and participated in nursing research on cleft care. She co-authored a chapter on cleft lip and palate in Primary Care of the Child with a Chronic Condition, a resource book for health professionals. Boekeleide earned her bachelor's degree in nursing at the University of Portland in 1974 and her master's in nursing and pediatric nurse practitioner degrees from UCSF in 1991.

Other Experts

Susanna Upton specializes in the study and correction of speech problems and resonance disorders in patients with cleft palate and other craniofacial problems. She has been the senior speech pathologist at UCSF's Center for Craniofacial Anomalies since 2003.

Upton received her Bachelor of Science in speech pathology and audiology from the University of Nevada School of Medicine in 1996 and her master's degree in education from North Carolina Central University in 1998. She is a member of the American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association and the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.

Alison Winder, M.A., M.S., received her degrees in genetic counseling and medical genetics at the University of California, Irvine and Indiana University. She meets with patients, parents or guardians to discuss the likely cause, prognosis and recurrence risk of the particular craniofacial condition affecting the family member.