[lakota1]

As a father of a child with a cleft lip I don't think I am mistaken in noticing that j phoenix also has one. i have never seen this remarked on in any biography. am I alone in noticing it? if he talked about it it would give great strength to others with the same problem

[JoaquinsFan]

Hi, yes he's had a cleft lip since he was born... some say it's was caused by surgery. However he's been quoted about it several times.

[Larien Saralonde]

I like his lips cleft and all ! I think it makes him look interesting.

[RoyalWithCheese]

I love it as well. My ex-boyfriend is an aspiring actor/director and is still my good friend, and he has a clef lip as well. Seeing him in the movie Gladiator made me so happy.

[Jellybeanistheish]

i think its hot...i love it

[rosenylund]

I find his cleft lip sexy. It seems to be common knowledge that he had surgery to correct it but I don't know where this can be checked as fact.

[DEPPendant]

I read in one interview that he was born with the scar, and that it wasn't a cleft lip. I dunno what to think!

[Frederika Blankenship]

The cleft lip makes him uniquely sexy. I agree.

[ReesaBelle]

Yeh apparently its not a cleft lip.. He was just born with a scar there..

I was reading an interview, and it went along these lines..

"his mum was sitting outside, when she had a sharp pain in her stomach.. Not long after she went to the hospital and gave birth to Joaquin. One of the doctors looked at Joaquins lip and said, "this is one of the best cleft lip surgeries ive ever seen" With Joaquins Mum replying " he never had surgery!, its just a birth scar!" The sharp pain, was suppose to be like, someone healing his cleft lip, or some divine act i think..

lol... Interestinggggggggg

[TerraCotta]

Uhm, people aren't born with scars. Scars are a result of an injury or can be made by surgery but uhm, no, babies aren't just born with scars. I worked many years for a plastic surgeon, and over those years saw many cleft lips and palates. I'd say with about 99.99% certainty, J. Phoenix was born with a unilateral cleft lip, not as severe as some other variations. He's a handsome young man but would do well with braces.

TC

Originally Posted by ReesaBelle

Yeh apparently its not a cleft lip.. He was just born with a scar there..

I was reading an interview, and it went along these lines..

"his mum was sitting outside, when she had a sharp pain in her stomach.. Not long after she went to the hospital and gave birth to Joaquin. One of the doctors looked at Joaquins lip and said, "this is one of the best cleft lip surgeries ive ever seen" With Joaquins Mum replying " he never had surgery!, its just a birth scar!" The sharp pain, was suppose to be like, someone healing his cleft lip, or some divine act i think..

lol... Interestinggggggggg

[jellybelly]

Originally Posted by TerraCotta

Uhm, people aren't born with scars. Scars are a result of an injury or can be made by surgery but uhm, no, babies aren't just born with scars. I worked many years for a plastic surgeon, and over those years saw many cleft lips and palates. I'd say with about 99.99% certainty, J. Phoenix was born with a unilateral cleft lip, not as severe as some other variations. He's a handsome young man but would do well with braces.

TC

Sorry to burst your bubble mr plastic surgeon, but I would like you to meet my daughter, she must be a medical miracle. She was born with a raised scar on her upper lip, running from the left of the bow to the middle of her left nostril.(pretty much the same as Joaquins) The bow of her lip was not symetrical and her nostril was a bit crooked.She did not have a cleft, there was no split, her palete and teeth are normal. Doctors figure it healed before birth. Because the lip and nose not being asymetrical, we had minor cosmetic surgery to straighten her lip and nose(make asymetrical) and decrease the raised scar. So either he and my daughter were both miracles. (As a doctor you should open your mind a little more the abnormalilties of life)

[mla1979]

Originally Posted by jellybelly

Sorry to burst your bubble mr plastic surgeon, but I would like you to meet my daughter, she must be a medical miracle. She was born with a raised scar on her upper lip, running from the left of the bow to the middle of her left nostril.(pretty much the same as Joaquins) The bow of her lip was not symetrical and her nostril was a bit crooked.She did not have a cleft, there was no split, her palete and teeth are normal. Doctors figure it healed before birth. Because the lip and nose not being asymetrical, we had minor cosmetic surgery to straighten her lip and nose(make asymetrical) and decrease the raised scar. So either he and my daughter were both miracles. (As a doctor you should open your mind a little more the abnormalilties of life)

my daughter was born with the same thing. we did not have it fixed.

[amyshol]

Originally Posted by mla1979

my daughter was born with the same thing. we did not have it fixed.

Hey, just thought I'd add my two cents in case people wanted to hear from a speech pathologist who treats kids with cleft lip/palate: It's medical name is a microform. And, yep, it's a cleft that basically repaired itself prior to birth and just left a little mark. Sometimes there is a submucous cleft (intact skin and bone, but muscle tissue not connected at the soft palate.) I'm thinking that J. either has the said microform and no submucous cleft, or he had a hell of a surgical repair and/or speech treatment because he does not sound excessively nasal in the least to me!

[Pjones4052]

Originally Posted by amyshol

Hey, just thought I'd add my two cents in case people wanted to hear from a speech pathologist who treats kids with cleft lip/palate: It's medical name is a microform. And, yep, it's a cleft that basically repaired itself prior to birth and just left a little mark. Sometimes there is a submucous cleft (intact skin and bone, but muscle tissue not connected at the soft palate.) I'm thinking that J. either has the said microform and no submucous cleft, or he had a hell of a surgical repair and/or speech treatment because he does not sound excessively nasal in the least to me!

I just had to interject here as well. Not all people born with cleft lips and palates have nasal speech. I am a 35-year-old female that was born with a bilateral cleft lip and palate and I have NO nasal-sounding speech whatsoever.

[pegster66]

I have a 20 year old son that was born with a unilateral cleft lip and palate and did not aquire the hypernasal speech pattern. I noticed that joaquin looked like he may have had a cleft but some posts I have read and biographies state otherwise.

[dacoghlan]

Originally Posted by jellybelly

Sorry to burst your bubble mr plastic surgeon, but I would like you to meet my daughter, she must be a medical miracle. She was born with a raised scar on her upper lip, running from the left of the bow to the middle of her left nostril.(pretty much the same as Joaquins) The bow of her lip was not symetrical and her nostril was a bit crooked.She did not have a cleft, there was no split, her palete and teeth are normal. Doctors figure it healed before birth. Because the lip and nose not being asymetrical, we had minor cosmetic surgery to straighten her lip and nose(make asymetrical) and decrease the raised scar. So either he and my daughter were both miracles. (As a doctor you should open your mind a little more the abnormalilties of life)

My son was born with the same thing. When I brought him for assessment to a plastic surgeon, he said, "well I see we have a little joaquin Phoenix here" and explained that what he and my son have is a called forme frust lip, also called a micro cleft. But it is essentailly a cleft lip, that fortunately closed itself in the womb. And to add to the whole scar discussion, although my son has not had any surgery, the nurse during the exam referred to the closure line as a SCAR, even though he had never been cut. People do ask me if he has had a cleft repair because the line does look like a scar, and his upper lip is a little turned. And for those interested, we have not yet decided on whether or not to have it fixed. Tough decision.

[TeeKay]

Joaquin has NEVER had surgery on his lip and yes he WAS born with the SCAR.

[ley]

Originally Posted by TerraCotta

Uhm, people aren't born with scars. Scars are a result of an injury or can be made by surgery but uhm, no, babies aren't just born with scars. I worked many years for a plastic surgeon, and over those years saw many cleft lips and palates. I'd say with about 99.99% certainty, J. Phoenix was born with a unilateral cleft lip, not as severe as some other variations. He's a handsome young man but would do well with braces.

TC

YA! SORRY BUT my husband was born with just a scar also...soo...you are wrong!

[muralgirl]

I have the same thing as your daughter! When my parents brought me to a surgeon at six months, they asked who did my surgery. I had just a raised scar on my lip, and my nostrils are assymetrical. I am now 47 and considering a revision--I have had three surgeries and my nostrils are still not even, but worst of all is the scar(a furrowed scar on my lip). I am wondering how old your daughter is, what surgery she has had, whether you were happy with the result of the surgery, and what doctors you have used.

I'd love to hear from you! thanks.

[aarwen05]

I think he should just get over himself He has a cleft its stupid to think that he was born with a scar its dumb
I have a bilatteral Cleft lip and palate and im not ashamed of it
if hes ashamed of it he should wear a bag over his head like the elders in India make their kids with Clefts do hes an *** if he can go around being like that and you all sould realize that to

[aarwen05]

I have question for those of you who have had kids that have this raised scar or have this scar (Im NOT saying i dont belive you ) (It has been proven that it is a cleft but it for some reason was fixed before you were born) (by the way i envy you whole hartedly ive had 9 surgeries and they were not fun) Anyway as I was saying did you ever "feel" a what was it a sharp pain before the kid was born or did your mother feel this pain because i dont believe him and it has nothing to do with the fact that i dont like him i just dont belive in the whole devine intervention stuff i would like your totally unbiased opinionThank you and good day

By the way i would so think it was hot to if he would just fess up and say that it is what it is you know!?!


Oh and by the way Jellybelly terracotta said that he WORKED for a PS not that he was one so um... sorry you should aplogize to him

[velvetemr73]

Originally Posted by DEPPendant

I read in one interview that he was born with the scar, and that it wasn't a cleft lip. I dunno what to think!

Yes, I have also read that and believe he was just born with a scar.

[nicole_d_keewatin]

one minor facial feature,,and it dosn't even cross myself to talk about it
it was like
I didn't notice until some one would say it,

don't say it, I say to myself and not say it,

and the actor "Joaquin Phoenix" in the films he was in and still is very handsome,

[aarwen05]

Originally Posted by nicole_d_keewatin

one minor facial feature,,and it dosn't even cross myself to talk about it
it was like
I didn't notice until some one would say it,

don't say it, I say to myself and not say it,

and the actor "Joaquin Phoenix" in the films he was in and still is very handsome,

i have no idea what you are meaning!!!!

[brunozaid]

Funny that you never noticed that little... aspect of Joaquin's personality :-)))
I'm a painter and I don't know why, but i find this cleft lip really interesting: I started to "collect" male actors with this, say, particularity to paint they face:-) I just paint portraits of Joaquin but my children and I we founded out Viggo Mortensen and Jonathan Rhys Myers belonging to the family...
I think this "defect" is a kind of beautiful one...
A German friend of mines calls itself "Spalty" that means something like "divided"... Sounds really interesting to me.
If you want, have a look at my paintings at www.brunozaid.com
And I guess that your son has a beautiful face and probably amazing eyes :-)
Take care of you and your family :-)))

Bruno

[Teresa N.]

I have read several posts by people who said they or their children were born with scars on their lips and nasal assymetry. I can't say definitively whether or not Joaquin has had surgery, but what he does have resembles what my son has and what several others have alluded to -- a MICROFORM cleft lip. This occurs when the lip fissures close later than they are supposed to. In other words, there was a cleft, but it closed on its own in the womb. Because the other features had already formed, things don't "match up" quite right -- like badly matched wallpaper seams. My son also has an assymetrical nose which will require rhinoplasty. The issue here is with a cartilage deficiency, but it is all related to the issue of the lip. You CAN be born with a scar -- my son was. I really think that Joaquin probably does have a microform cleft lip. You can have surgery to lessen the scar or to match up the vermilion line, or you can leave it be -- he might never have had to have surgery. Microforms don't necessarily come with a cleft palate -- my son's palate was fine. I think his interview was true -- he doesn't have a true cleft lip. BUT, he probably does have a microform cleft.

[aarwen05]

Originally Posted by Teresa N.

I have read several posts by people who said they or their children were born with scars on their lips and nasal assymetry. I can't say definitively whether or not Joaquin has had surgery, but what he does have resembles what my son has and what several others have alluded to -- a MICROFORM cleft lip. This occurs when the lip fissures close later than they are supposed to. In other words, there was a cleft, but it closed on its own in the womb. Because the other features had already formed, things don't "match up" quite right -- like badly matched wallpaper seams. My son also has an assymetrical nose which will require rhinoplasty. The issue here is with a cartilage deficiency, but it is all related to the issue of the lip. You CAN be born with a scar -- my son was. I really think that Joaquin probably does have a microform cleft lip. You can have surgery to lessen the scar or to match up the vermilion line, or you can leave it be -- he might never have had to have surgery. Microforms don't necessarily come with a cleft palate -- my son's palate was fine. I think his interview was true -- he doesn't have a true cleft lip. BUT, he probably does have a microform cleft.

He should still admit to it I bet your son admits to his
with the horribal facial hair he has now it looks even more like a unilateral then it did when he actually cared about what he looked like

[carolina r.]

Originally Posted by ley

YA! SORRY BUT my husband was born with just a scar also...soo...you are wrong!

Hi my little son was born just with the scar that we now know is call Microform cleft lip MCL, my question is if your husband ever had surgery or not? we are thinking into do it now that my son is close to 2 years old but we are not really sure if is the best decision as we see him perfect just with "a scar" in his upper lip.
The doctor said that the muscle is not joint inside the upper lip and that's why surgery is the way to go, did your husband had that? as apparently as you get older it get worst?
Thanks for your reply, my email is arqcarolinareyes@yahoo.com if you can cc me in.
Thanks for your time
Carolina