Lip & Tongue-Tie Treatment – Orlando, FL
Removing Barriers to Better Oral Health
At Your Downtown Dentistry, Dr. Nabi is expertly trained to perform lip and tongue-tie treatment on patients of all ages. Using advanced technologies such as a soft tissue laser, she can release banded tissues underneath the tongue and behind the upper lip to increase movement and ultimately, improve a patient’s overall health. If you believe that you or your child may have a lip or tongue tie, call our dental office to schedule an appointment.
Why Choose Your Downtown Dentistry for Lip & Tongue-Tie Treatment?
- Soft Tissue Laser Used for Added Comfort
- Able to Treat Infants to Help with Feeding
- Sedation Dentistry Available
How Do Lip and Tongue Ties Develop?
A lip or tongue tie can form while an infant is still in the womb. Known as ankyloglossia, this condition develops when the frenulum, which is the thin tissue that connects the lip to the gums or the tongue to the floor of the mouth, is too thick and tight. As a result, it inhibits the tongue or lip from obtaining full movement, which can have a negative impact on a baby’s ability to nurse or a child’s ability to speak clearly.
Why Is It Important to Treat Lip & Tongue Ties?
Treating a lip or tongue tie is important because not doing so can lead to more serious problems in the future.
For babies, being able to breastfeed or take a bottle is pivotal to their development. But if the tongue or lip tie is too tight, it can prove difficult, resulting in fussiness, poor weight gain, and even bouts of colic and acid reflux.
For children and teenagers, an untreated lip or tongue tie can result in a speech impediment, poor nutrition because of an inability to swallow effectively, self-esteem issues because of a gap that can form between teeth, and even a sleep-breathing disorder.
How Lip & Tongue Tie Treatment Works
Administering lip or tongue-tie treatment requires the help of a skilled and expert dental professional who knows how to properly perform a frenectomy. Using a soft tissue laser, Dr. Nabi can release the lip or tongue tie using gentle light energy. Targeting only this area of soft tissue, it cauterizes while it works so that there is minimal bleeding and swelling.
And because a laser is used as opposed to a traditional scalpel and sutures, there is little risk for postoperative infection because it sterilizes the area.
Once the banded tissue is released, your child will be able to move their lip and tongue freely. If you have a baby that received this type of treatment, you will be able to feed your infant immediately following their appointment.