When our babies need us, we’re there. It’s what parents do. If you’re a parent struggling to help an infant with lip or tongue-tie, you have likely experienced the pain and frustration of trying to help your child comfortably complete the simplest tasks like feeding or smiling. If you are looking for answers or want help with revising your child’s lip or tongue-tie, keep reading to find out more.
1 – What Age Do You Start Revising for Lip & Tongue-Tie?
A skilled dentist or medical professional can perform a lip or tongue-tie revision on the day your child is born. Yes – that soon! Strating the revising process early can help your child fully adjust with little to no disruption. The use of laser revision is recommended for infants, as it is more comfortable than manual revision and the treatment site will heal more quickly.
2 – Is There an Age You Stop Revising?
Not necessarily. However, at some ages, the process may be very scary for the child. If the physical or emotional risk outweighs the reward, we may recommend you wait to revise when the child is old enough to understand what’s happening.
3 – Can You Help if We Need to Wait to Revise?
Skilled therapists can be consulted, if you need to wait for revision. Infants and mothers may want to consult with a feeding therapist to promote healthy, comfortable breast or formula feeding. Your child may need orofacial myofunctional therapy (OMT). These therapies help to stretch the muscles and teach your child to comfortably eat, speak, and breath. As the child ages, he or she may need to see a speech therapist to correct any impediments caused by the lip or tongue-tie.
4 – How is Revision Completed?
The dentist will apply some topical numbing medication. Then, in most cases, a high powered laser is used to remove the excess soft tissue. This allows the dentist to target a precise area, and because the wound is instantly cauterized during treatment, the area heals very quickly with minimal risk for infection. Some doctors still use traditional scalpel and suture revision techniques, and with proper postoperative care, these procedures can be just as successful as laser treatments.
Meet Dr. Prather
Dr. Paige Prather has years of training and experience working with infants, children, and parents dealing with lip and tongue-tie. In fact, her own son was born with this health concern, and Dr. Prather performed his revision when he was just 48 hours old! Her earliest revision was for a 12 hour old child, and she recommends parents contact her as soon as possible for this procedure. Our Franklin dentistry team is here to help whenever you need us, so please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have questions or concerns.