Tongue and Lip Ties

As a mom myself, who had a stressful nursing journey, I know firsthand how exhausting and emotional nursing can be when something isn’t quite right. It shouldn’t hurt, and you shouldn’t feel alone trying to figure it out. With plenty of experience helping families through gentle tongue and lip tie releases, my passion is to make this easier for you and your baby with thoughtful care and support that doesn’t end when you leave the office. I’m here to help you enjoy feeding again with the same compassion and support I’d want for my own family. Together we’ll restore the calm, sweet moments you and your baby are meant to share.

Tongue and lip ties occur when the tissue that connects the tongue to the floor of the mouth or the upper lip to the gum is too tight, thick, or restrictive. These ties are quite common, affecting an estimated 4-10% of infants. These ties can have a major impact on breastfeeding and a child’s overall quality of life. They can interfere with breastfeeding by making it difficult to latch leading to poor weight gain, fussiness, pain for mom and colicky behavior. In older children, untreated ties may contribute to speech delays, difficulty with certain sounds, picky eating, trouble with oral hygiene, and even sleep issues due to improper tongue positioning. Some ties are easily visible, while others may be hidden. Both can affect children and cause issues.

Does My Child Need a Frenectomy?

Infants with tongue-ties may:

• Have difficulty nursing or taking a bottle
• Drip milk out of their mouth when eating
• Have trouble gaining weight
• Click their tongue or smack their lips when eating
• Have reflux or symptoms of colic
• Be continually fussy, often due to gas

Older children with tongue-ties may:

• Have trouble sleeping
• Experience a strong gag reflex
• Have delayed speech
• Speak softer than average or have difficulty being understood
• Choke when eating or drinking
• Be a picky eater or eat their food slowly
• Sleep with their mouth open, snore or grind their teeth

Dr. Andrea offers a thorough evaluation to assess whether your child has restrictions that may contribute to their difficulties. Not every tongue or lip tie needs to be released. The key factor isn’t just the appearance of the tie, it’s whether or not it’s functionally restrictive.  Each tie can affect a child differently, which is why Dr. Andrea looks at form and function when making her recommendations. The decision to release is always made thoughtfully and with the child’s comfort and long-term health in mind. We work closely with many different types of providers and only recommend a release when we truly believe it will improve the child’s quality of life. 

Our Difference

At Tinker Tooth Pediatric Dentistry, we use a LightScalpel Carbon Dioxide Laser to perform the frenectomy. The laser cleanly and precisely vaporizes while sealing blood vessels simultaneously. The CO2 laser is so precise that it is able to selectively remove only a few cells at a time. The procedure is nearly painless with minimal to no bleeding, quick healing and can usually be completed in as little as 20-30 seconds. For infants we have a nursing room where the mother can take their child post-procedure.

Benefits:

Infants

• Nursing/feeding with less pain
• Improved symptoms
• Improved Sleep

Toddler/Older Children: 

• Speaking more clearly and confidently
• Improved sleep and breathing
• Improvement in chewing, digestion and swallowing

There are many advantages that the LightScalpel Carbon Dioxide laser technology offers, including:

• Improved safety
• Reduced risk of infection
• Little to no pain
• Shortened procedure time
• Less swelling and discomfort
• Better results / high success rate
• Faster recovery