What is Lip and Tongue Tie?

Although it is more commonly seen and treated in newborns, lip and tongue tie can also affect adults. Tongue tie is a condition in which the thin or thick piece of skin under the patient’s tongue is abnormally short. That unusual growth may then restrict the movement of the tongue tip or the body of the tongue.

A lip tie is where a piece of the skin under the upper lip (labial frenulum) is very short or thick and is pinned too tightly to the upper gum – preventing sufficient flanging of the lip. While ideally treated in infancy, we are firm believers in the fact that it is never too late to benefit from a lip and tongue tie treatment.

The side effects of not treating a lip or tongue tie are as follows in:

Children

  • Inability to chew age-appropriate solid foods
  • Gagging, choking or vomiting foods
  • Persisting food fads
  • Difficulties related to dental hygiene
  • Persistence of dribbling
  • Delayed development of speech
  • Deterioration in speech
  • Dental problems starting to appear
  • Loss of self-confidence because they feel and sound ‘different’
  • Airway issues
  • Mouth breathing
  • Snoring

Adults

  • Inability to open the mouth widely affects speech and eating habits.
  • Always having to watch their speech
  • Inability to speak clearly when talking fast/loud/soft
  • Difficulty talking after even moderate amount of alcohol
  • Clicky and/or painful jaws
  • Migraines
  • Protrusion of the lower jaws
  • Multiple effects in work situations.
  • Effects on social situations, eating out, kissing, relationships
  • Dental health, a tendency to have inflamed gums, and increased need for fillings and extractions
  • Sensitivity about personal appearance
  • Emotional factors resulting in the rising level of stress
  • Tongue tie in the elderly often makes it difficult to keep a denture in place.

Lip & Tongue Tie Laser Treatment versus Scalpel

Laser frenectomy is a quick and virtually painless procedure that utilizes a laser to release the frenulum attaching a patient's tongue or lip to the rest of the mouth.

The traditional treatment method for years has been the use of scalpel to facilitate the tissue's release. However, with new laser technology available, at Dental Stylers we can perform the same procedure much quicker and with less pain than traditional methods.

The benefits of laser treatments are:

  • Less bleeding
  • Lowered chance of infection
  • No stitches / quicker healing
  • Reduced scarring
  • Much higher chance of success and lower chance of regrowth