What is a Frenectomy?

A tongue tie is a soft tissue connection that everyone has, allowing the tongue to attach to the floor of the mouth and the lips to the gums. If these are shorter or thicker than normal, they can cause various problems.

A tongue tie attached to the floor of the mouth by a short, thick band can restrict its movement. While there may be serious cases where the tongue is completely attached to the floor of the mouth, there may also be cases where it doesn't cause any problems or restrictions. The tongue tie can sometimes regress and return to normal size as the baby transitions from infancy to childhood.

A tongue tie can cause sucking and feeding problems in newborns because the tongue cannot be moved. Later in life, it can lead to speech disorders, orthodontic problems, gaps in the lower front teeth, and gum problems.

A lip tie can cause sucking and feeding problems in babies, and in later years, it can cause problems with the eruption of the upper front teeth and gaps between the teeth.

How Can You Tell If a Tongue Tie Is Short?

In cases where the tongue tie is short or thick, limited tongue movement is often observed, and the tip of the tongue forms a "heart" or "v" shape when protruding. In more severe cases, the tongue may not be able to be lifted up toward the palate, protruded, or reach the lips. This can be equated with an inability to lick ice cream in children.

During the examination, limited tongue movement is considered, speech is evaluated, and certain letters are checked. The letters most difficult to pronounce are usually "s" and "r."

In newborns, the baby's mouth and tongue are examined.

How Can a Short Lip Tie Be Identified?

A lip tie appears as a thick band between the upper two front teeth. Children may sometimes hesitate to touch this area with a toothbrush.

What is Frenectomy Treatment?

The most important reason for treating a tongue tie is speech problems due to limited movement. Treatment for a tongue tie involves surgically cutting the tie or laser removal of the tissue.

Laser treatment for tongue and lip ties allows for painless and bleeding-free tissue removal using only topical anesthesia, eliminating the need for anesthesia and eliminating the need for stitches. Laser treatment is more comfortable than traditional methods, with less pain during and after treatment and fewer feeding and speech complications. Recovery is also faster than traditional methods. Speech and letter pronunciation usually improve spontaneously. During the recovery process, tongue exercises should be performed in collaboration with the patient, and a speech therapist should be consulted if necessary.

What is the Timing of Frenectomy Treatment?

We recommend removing a tongue tie as soon as possible after it is detected to be short, thick, or attached. This can prevent structural changes in the tongue, feeding and swallowing problems, tooth and gum problems, and speech problems before they develop or become severe.

There is no specific age limit for tongue tie removal. This is ideal, considering that around 4-5 years of age is the age when a child stops swallowing and begins to speak and can pronounce letters properly.

For lip tie removal, the patient should be monitored until at least age 10, and the upper canines should be erected. Removing the lip tie too early can cause scar tissue formation. This structure can interfere with subsequent diastema closure. If the gap between the upper front teeth has not closed despite the canines erupting, removal of the tie is a definitive decision.