Being tongue-tied isn’t always just a figure of speech. Sometimes it’s an issue that can make it harder to learn to speak in the first place. In infants a tongue tie is an anatomical variation technically called ankyloglossia. Ankyloglossia is not itself a health risk, but it can interfere with an infant’s speech development and ability to breastfeed. Parents with any concerns about whether their infant’s anatomical variation will affect her ability to breastfeed or learn to speak should consult with a tongue specialist in Tampa. Here’s an introduction to the issues to guide that conversation and answer some common questions.
The frenulum is a small and (usually) thin piece of tissue that connects an infant’s tongue to the bottom of her mouth. Everyone has a frenulum. You can feel and see yours in the mirror if you open your mouth widely and touch your tongue to the roof of your mouth. Ankyloglossia is a phenomenon where an infant’s frenulum is shorter or thicker than usual, with the result that your infant’s tongue has much less range of motion than it otherwise would. Tongue ties are not exceedingly rare. As many as 2% to 5% of infants are born with a tight frenulum.
How does a tongue tie affect speech?
Not every tongue tie affects a child’s ability to speak. If you’re concerned about the potential or apparent impact of a tongue tie on your child’s speech development, contact a pediatric tongue-tie center in Tampa or a speech pathologist. A speech pathologist or tongue tie specialist in Tampa will investigate your child’s tongue tie and help to determine if and how it is affecting your child’s speech development. There are many factors that affect the pace and pattern of how a child learns to speak. A short or thick frenulum may be a contributing factor. Your speech pathologist can help determine the best strategy to help your child.
Tongue ties can affect a child’s ability to speak because she needs to be able to move her tongue freely enough to make several sounds. A tight, thick or unusually short frenulum can make it more difficult to make the sounds of the letters d, n, t, l, s, z and th. In some cases, speech pathologists can help children to make those sounds in different ways. In others, treating your child’s tongue tie may be appropriate to ease speech development — especially if the tongue tie is also affecting oral hygiene, breastfeeding, weight gain and growth.
What is a frenectomy?
An infant frenectomy is a procedure to quickly, safely and painlessly cut your infant’s short, thick or tight frenulum to allow complete and natural range of motion of your infant’s tongue. You can hold your infant in your arms during the procedure to help her to feel and stay calm, comfortable and still. A topical anesthetic will be placed on the affected area so your child will feel minimal discomfort. Once the anesthetic takes effect, your tongue tie specialist in Tampa will use a soft tissue laser to cut the frenulum in just a few seconds with minimal bleeding or no bleeding at all. If necessary, stitches will be put in place though that is often unnecessary.
A tongue tie specialist in Tampa may recommend pre-operative or postoperative tongue and mouth exercises for your child to perform to help develop new muscle dexterity and range of motion, and to encourage the use of your infant’s tongue to speak naturally and maintain her oral hygiene.
If you have questions about whether your infant has a tongue tie, and whether it’s serious, contact a tongue tie center in Tampa to get informed advice and support.