Articles
Tongue- and lip-tie issues can be complex.
We’re here to present the latest thinking on tongue-ties in a clear and easy-to-read format. We hope these thoughts are helpful whether you are a patient, professional, or family member as you learn more on your journey. For more insights, go to TongueTie.com.
“They Will Just Laser Everyone,” And Other Common Myths, Part 1.
Myth #1: “They will just laser everyone.” First off, we do not use a lightsaber! We use an ultra-precise surgical CO2 laser that looks like a pen and doesn’t even touch the tissue. It removes tissue layer by layer, and allows us to see all the restriction and remove it safely, quickly, and as gently as possible. Just the other day, a patient told us that their pediatrician thinks we will “find something to cut on everyone.” So don’t go for a consult, they said. The well-meaning provider will tell the parent that instead of being evaluated for a tie, they should try other things instead. Give the struggling baby a bottle, give formula, take reflux medication (off-label, and has side effects), or “just give it time.” These suggestions address the symptoms, but not the root cause. Tongue restrictions are widespread, affecting around 20% of babies, but most go undiagnosed, and only the symptoms are treated. We do not laser everyone that comes to see us. We perform a careful evaluation and listen to mom tell her full story and the child’s story. After understanding all the details and doing an exam, we are in a better position to make […]
Are Too Many Babies Getting Their Tongues Clipped? The Real Story.
If you read the news headlines, it sure sounds like it! A recent article came out in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA – ENT), which is a high impact journal. The article discussed looking into different reasons for feeding problems in infants, and still recommended many of them to have tongue-tie releases. Unfortunately, the news media spun the article as “Babies ‘Don’t Need Tongue-Tie Surgery to Feed’” from the BBC. Others from Today, NYT, etc. all said virtually the same thing; babies don’t need their tongue’s clipped. I agree- they don’t need a clip, they need a full release, as discussed in a previous post. But these people are actually arguing that we should leave a known physical barrier to normal development and life skills in children with diagnosed feeding problems. If there is a problem with feeding, the article suggested giving reflux medication, pushing them on the boob harder, tapping their feet or using a cold washcloth on the baby to wake it up… They are treating symptoms of tongue-tie problems instead of the ROOT cause – THE RESTRICTION! If a child had webbed fingers, their fingers were fused together, no one would argue to leave them […]
Don’t Get That Tongue-Tie Clipped or Snipped… Get a Full Release Instead.
What is a full tongue-tie release? Hint: It’s not a clip or a snip! I don’t like the term “clip” or “snip.” Those are four-letter words to me. If I hear a baby or child was clipped or snipped, about 95% of the time it wasn’t enough. Normally a clip or snip is performed by a provider at the hospital or in the office (ENT or pediatrician), or while the child was put to sleep (it’s not necessary to put kids to sleep for this procedure, but that’s another topic). Warning images of tongues ahead… The proper term is really a release of the tight tissue, so providers who are up-to-date will call the procedure a “release” instead of clip or snip. The concept that treating a tongue-tie is “no big deal” is what leads to the problem with the clip. If they do a clip, they will almost always cut halfway with scissors, and leave a thick band of tissue. If it’s cut halfway, it will work half the time. They think they are getting it all, but in reality, if you were to lift up on the tongue, it ends up looking like this: See that thick […]
Tongue-Tie vs. Symptomatic Tongue Restriction
Often professionals think of tongue-tie as a simple condition; it’s a string under the tongue, and you just snip it and you’re done. “What’s the big deal?” they say. Well, the concept of a string is much simplified (and we use the word in the title of our book as a metaphor) but it’s actually a webbing of fascia or connective tissue that is folded up into a gathering under the tongue that has a variable thickness, elasticity, and location of attachment. In a nutshell, it’s complicated and can have many different appearances from a to-the-tip tie (anterior tongue-tie), to a virtually invisible band of restrictive tissue (posterior tongue-tie). The difficulty in treating this condition is because any variation of appearance can cause any range of symptoms. A to-the-tip tie can sometimes cause relatively few issues, and a hidden thick webbing that many healthcare providers would dismiss or say there is “no tie” can cause terrible symptoms that greatly affect a family’s quality of life. Symptoms and function are more important than appearance. The picture below is of a baby who was a failure to thrive and no one could figure out why. He had a hidden tongue restriction, and […]
Thoughts on Tongue-Tied Book, One Year Later
It’s been a whole year since Tongue-Tied was released (born) after a year-long gestation. We have been so blessed by the many supporters both parents and professionals that made this project possible. Our goal is to help as many people as we can who are struggling with tongue and lip-tie issues. We have been a Bestselling book on Amazon for a whole year in Pediatric Dentistry, and have even been the #1 Bestseller in tougher categories like Parenting Babies and Toddlers, Speech and Audiology, Children’s Health, and more. We would have never dreamed that this book would reach such a vast and global audience, and has been sold in over 20 different counties. We are truly blessed and thankful for the opportunity to help children and families all over the globe. We want to be a blessing in return to those around the world who are in dire poverty and suffering from things that those of us in developing countries take for granted like clean water and freedom from preventable diseases like diarrhea. We have patterned with Neverthrist Water to provide clean water in Chad, Cambodia, and Uganda to people who travel for hours each day to fetch dirty water. […]