This is a simple procedure where the doctor clips the extra tissue underneath the tongue to allow the tongue a wider range of motion. For babies, the procedure can be done in-office, and babies can breastfeed immediately after the procedure.
For children, the procedure is typically done under general or local anesthesia. After the frenectomy, your child may need to see a speech therapist to help them retrain their tongue muscles. To locate a Banner Health specialist near you, visit bannerhealth. By Regan Olsson , Contributing Writer. Jan 23, Teach Me. What to look for Tongue-ties can range from mild to severe. Here are some signs and symptoms to look out for.
In newborns and babies, you may notice: They have a V-shaped or heart-shaped indentation at the tip of their tongue. They have difficulty latching during breastfeeding. They may make a noticeable clicking sound while they feed. For nursing moms, you may experience cracked, sore nipples or issues with milk supply. A study found that surgical release of tongue or lip tie, and more specifically, posterior tongue-tie, resulted in improvements in maternal and infant breastfeeding outcomes.
Additionally, researchers discovered that the improvements occurred early, at 1 week post-procedure, and continued to improve for several weeks. Ghaheri says tongue-tie treatment depends on the severity, age, and symptoms. Ghaheri prefers not to snip with scissors, but to use a laser, which typically results in less bleeding.
Treating difficulties with breastfeeding in infants with frenotomy is a controversial topic. Although the procedure is relatively low risk, some people question the need to remove a tongue-tie to help with feeding. This will allow parents to make the best decision for their unique circumstances. If a frenotomy is not recommended, Madden says other ways to manage tongue-ties include craniosacral therapy , lactation interventions, physical and occupational therapy, and oral motor therapy.
Tongue-ties can have an impact on nursing, say all three experts. In those instances, he says the baby uses their lips and gums to hold on, which starts the cascade of various symptoms. Madden says it is well documented that tongue-ties can cause pain with breastfeeding.
Tongue-ties can also interfere with latching, she says, due to the tongue not being able to extend and elevate to effectively latch onto the nipple and remove milk.
That said, she does point out that we desperately need more research regarding the effects of tongue-ties on babies. We know that tongue-tie can contribute to weight gain problems and failure to thrive in infancy. Other than feeding issues, tongue-tie can also cause problems with dental occlusion misalignment and orthodontic health. But again, Ghaheri says the evidence is still emerging. Although the ability to learn speech is not a problem, an untreated tongue-tie may cause issues with the way a child pronounces words.
Still, in some cases, there are no long-term effects of leaving a tongue-tie. As a child grows, their oral functioning can compensate for the restricted movement of the tongue.
Lip and buccal cheek ties are two other oral ties you may find in babies. Similar to a tongue-tie, an upper lip tie or superior labial frenulum is the soft tissue that attaches the upper lip to the anterior gums. While rare, some babies may also have a buccal tie, which is an abnormal tie extending from the cheeks to the gums. Although many studies support treating anterior tongue-ties to alleviate breastfeeding issues, upper lip ties are still being studied for more evidence-based recommendations related to diagnosis and treatment.
They will be able to perform an evaluation and refer you for treatment. Topic Overview What is tongue-tie? What causes tongue-tie? What are the symptoms? But some children with tongue-tie have: Trouble latching on to the mother's breast and sucking. Bottle-fed babies usually don't have feeding problems, because it is easy to get milk from the nipple of a bottle. Gaps or spaces between the front lower teeth. Speech problems, because the tip of the tongue cannot rise high enough to make some sounds clearly, such as t, d, z, s, th, n, and l.
Personal or social problems related to the restricted tongue movement, such as problems cleaning food off the teeth with the tongue. A child with tongue-tie may be made fun of by peers. How is tongue-tie diagnosed? How is it treated? While you wait and see, you can also: Talk to a lactation consultant if you are having breastfeeding problems.
Consult a speech therapist if your toddler is having speech problems. Credits Current as of: May 27,
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