While many pediatric doctors and dentists are familiar with tongue-tie, lip-tie can hide beneath the upper lip in plain sight. Our lip-tie specialist in Tampa suggests that we flip the lip when looking at infants with feeding problems to determine if a lip-tie is the cause. In this blog post, our Tampa Tongue Tie Center team describes how a lip-tie can cause feeding problems and what you can do to resolve the issue.
What is Upper-Lip Tie?
Upper lip-ties occur when the frenulum, or the band of tissue that attaches the upper lip to the upper gums, is restricted or too short. This problem can lead to struggles with feeding, speaking, and overall quality of life.
How Might an Upper Lip-Tie Impact Feeding?
The impact of lip-tie for children can vary according to its severity and the child’s facial structure; however, generally, lip-tie causes trouble with:
● Breast and bottle feeding- lip-tie can cause an infant to have trouble latching onto the breast or bottle because the lip-tie prevents them from creating a seal around the nipple and using enough suction. This can lead to a colicky baby and a baby that is struggling to gain weight, and that requires more feedings each day.
● Spoon feeding- lip-tie causes a child to be unable to adequately clean food off a spoon with their top lip. Additionally, children with lip-tie often also have inadequate caloric intake due to inefficient feeding methods and fatigue. Lip restriction may also cause problems with swallowing.
● Finger feeding- those with lip-tie may end up becoming picky eaters because eating certain foods is challenging. Having a lip-tie means that a child will find it very difficult to manipulate food with their top lip for biting, chewing, and swallowing.
If you have noticed that your child is exhibiting any of the above signs while attempting to feed, please contact our lip-tie center near you for a consultation.
Upper Lip-Tie and Oral Hygiene
Upper lip-tie can lead to the following dental issues:
● Early tooth decay on the upper teeth where food and milk get easily trapped
● A large gap between the front teeth
● Gum disease in adulthood
● Potential changes in tooth structure due to certain compensatory methods that children may use, such as thumb or finger sucking
How Can Upper Lip-Tie Be Treated?
Before starting treatment, it is a good idea to speak to a lactation consultant if your child is still breastfeeding to ensure that everything goes smoothly following the procedure.
At our lip-tie center in Tampa, we offer lip tie revision. Our experienced physician will cut a small piece of tissue in the frenulum during this procedure to loosen it. This can either be done with a laser or a scalpel while the child is asleep. The procedure is quick and painless.
It is important to note that not all children require lip-tie revision, as sometimes certain feeding changes can alleviate the majority of the problem.
Visit Tampa Tongue Tie Center
If you have noticed struggles with your infant’s ability to eat or speak, visit our team at Tampa Tongue Tie Center for an evaluation of your child’s mouth. We can look for tongue and lip-tie and provide you with advice and treatment options. Please do not hesitate to contact us and book a consultation today!