Written by Editorial Team
Have you noticed infants who are unable to suck properly? A toddler who shows difficulty in chewing? Children unable to lick ice cream cones like others? Or both children and grownups who are underprivileged by their poor ability to speak?
There is one underlying reason that connects all these issues – tongue-tie.
Tongue-tie or ankyloglossia is a congenital physical condition that limits the tongue’s range of movement. This can cause an extensive variety of troubles that affects the patient in several ways as the tongue is the most significant muscle that aids in speech and swallowing food. If its movement is restricted, that obviously develops eating and speaking problems. A mild tongue-tie can be easy to deal with, but a severe case may make the baby’s tongue fuse to the bottom of the mouth and making feeding a difficult issue.
There is a tissue that attaches the tongue to the bottom of the mouth called lingual frenulum. Tongue-tie is said to occur:
All the above state of affairs will restrict the movement of the tongue, leading to tongue-tie.
To some extent, yes it does. A mild tongue-tie may not pose any feeding problems, but a severe case may make it difficult for your baby to latch on the breast for feeding. She may also slip off the breast frequently and may not gain adequate weight. All this can also leave your nipples sore and painful, which could be frustrating to you and the baby both.
If your child possesses the following symptoms you can assume he or she is having tongue-tie. However, these are only assumptions and it is strongly recommended to get the same diagnosed by the doctor.
Tongue-tie can be diagnosed by simply performing a physical examination of the child’s mouth by the doctor. All the symptoms explained above will help the doctor to confirm the state of tongue-tie.
The treatment of the tongue-tie more or less depends on the age and extension of the tie.
If the tongue-tie affects feeding, doctors prefer to correct it right away even before the child is discharged from the hospital.
If the tongue-tie is not affecting the feeding, some doctors prefer to wait and see attitude for a short period of time allowing the child’s lingual frenulum to stretch itself. The tissue can loosen when enough time is given, sorting out the tongue-tie itself. It is found to improve by the age of three in many cases.
Severe cases of tongue-tie need surgical treatment. Surgical methods are of two types:
Never ignore tongue-tie of your child thinking that it will resolve in time. Once your baby shows symptoms of tongue-tie, he or she should be under constant observation of the doctor. Moreover, extend your personal attention, care, and support to your child which helps him to face this issue without feeling dejected.
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