Tongue-tie is a metaphor about stumbling over your words that is more than just a metaphor. It’s an actual oral condition that has ramifications for everything from breastfeeding to your airway, speech to tooth health. Even so, tongue-tie research is still in its early stages, and much is still unknown. You need to know if your child has been diagnosed with tongue-tie. Our pediatric dentists at South Airdrie Smiles have provided all the information in this blog.
What Is Tongue Tie?
Due to a dominant characteristic gene mutation, oral difficulties such as tongue and lip knots arise in the womb. Tongue ties are classified in various ways by your pediatric dentist in Airdrie. An infant with a tongue tie, also known as ankyloglossia, will have a frenulum that is either too short or too thick, restricting the tongue’s movement. The frenulum is a tiny band of tissue that runs from the mouth’s floor to the tongue’s bottom.
Signs & Symptoms Of Tongue Tie
Your favorite Airdrie dentist has listed down the signs of this disease. The following are some of the signs and symptoms of tongue-tie:
- The tongue is unable to protrude over the lips.
- The tip of the tongue must not contact the roof of the mouth.
- The tongue is unable to migrate sideways to the mouth’s corners.
- The tongue tip may appear flat or square rather than pointed when expanded.
- The end of the tongue may appear notched or heart-shaped.
- A gap between the lower jaw’s front teeth is possible.
Breastfeeding or bottle-feeding may be challenging for a newborn with a tongue tie.
How To Treat Tongue Ties?
The frenum beneath the tongue is frequently severed in babies and children with tongue-tie. Airdrie dentists are now more likely to wait and watch what happens to the frenum as the patient grows.
Frenectomy
Frenectomy is a surgical treatment that involves cutting the lingual or labial frenum (the tissue in the middle of the upper and lower lip). The approach varies depending on the person’s age.
Your pediatric dentist in Airdrie can do the surgery with local or topical anesthetic for neonates under 12 weeks or with general anesthesia on rare occasions. The area is numbed, the baby’s head is held tightly, and the frenum is clipped (split) with surgical scissors or a laser if the local or topical anesthetic is used. Breastfeeding is possible right after the operation.
This method has been studied and proven to have low dangers and issues. Bleeding, infection, ulcers, discomfort, and injury to the tongue and its surrounding area are possible complications. According to reports, tongue mobility returns to normal three months after the treatment.
A general or local anesthetic may be administered by your Airdrie dentist before surgery for older children and adults. When the tongue tie has been surgically separated, stitches are required. The mouth may take several weeks to recover. Speech therapy may be necessary after surgery for older children and adults.
Anesthesia is the procedure’s most significant risk. However, there is a danger of bleeding, infection, and damage to the tongue or surrounding area, as with any surgery. Only severe cases of tongue-tie are usually divided.
We hope this blog has helped you to learn more about tongue-tie. Get in touch with us at South Airdrie Smiles for the best pediatric dentistry services in Airdrie, AB.
