What is a lip/tongue tie?
A frenulum is a piece of tissue that attaches the tongue to the floor of the mouth, and the lip to the upper gum. In the majority of infants and children, this piece of tissue allows full range of motion of the tongue and upper lip; however, in some patients the tissue can restrict movement. This can cause symptoms that affect feeding, speech, and tooth placement. When the tissue is restricting movement, it is considered a tongue or lip tie.
Why is this important?
If your infant has a tongue or lip tie it can interfere with complete tongue and lip mobility which is important in breast and bottle feeding. As your child grows it can also cause issues with speech, solid food eating, upper airway development and tooth placement.
Symptoms associated with tongue/lip ties:
Infant:
· Persistently shallow latch
· Gumming/chewing of the nipple
· Reflux symptoms
· Poor weight gain
· Blisters on the lips
· Feeding frequently
· Maternal pain while breastfeeding
· Cracked or blistered nipples
· Incomplete breast drainage
Toddler:
· Trouble transitioning to solid foods
· Pickiness about textures
· Strong gag reflex
· Persistently spitting food out
· Gap between front top teeth
· Delayed speech
· Speech articulation difficulty
· Mouth breathing
· Snoring
· Signs of sleep apnea
