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Signs Your Baby Has A Tongue-Tie!

Tongue-ties (ankyloglossia) are caused by an unusually tight band of tissue anchoring the tongue to the floor of the mouth. This restricts the tongue’s normal function, which can cause breastfeeding issues in infants, as well as speech, dental, and airway issues later on.

Here are the things to look for. Please remember that a baby with a tongue-tie may only have one of these signs, but they may also have many of these signs.

1- Breastfeeding hurts

Breastfeeding is not supposed to hurt. If it does, then something is wrong. Sometimes it’s simply a latch issue—but babies that have consistent difficulty latching correctly are often experiencing this because of a tongue- and/or lip-tie. Tongue-ties and lip-ties often go hand in hand. If your baby cannot flange their upper lip over the breast, this is a sign of a lip-tie—and an indicator that a tongue-tie is likely also present.

2- Cracked, bleeding nipples

Often, when a baby has a tongue-tie, the tongue is unable to draw the breast tissue into the baby’s soft palate, causing nipple damage from rubbing on the hard palate. Good positioning and using the ‘breast sandwich’ technique can help with this some of the time.

3- Misshapen nipples

Often, after a feed the mother’s nipples will look like the tip of a lipstick bullet, or have a crease on the end.

4- Frustration at the breast

A tongue-tied baby often gets frustrated at the breast, and may break latch frequently, because they are unable to transfer milk efficiently.

5- Clicking sounds while nursing

 A tongue-tied baby is often unable to form a proper seal around the breast, which results in clicking sounds as suction breaks repeatedly.

6- Too much suction

When the tongue is dysfunctional as a result of a tongue-tie, a baby will often attempt to compensate for this by sucking harder. This excess vacuum can be exhausting for the baby, and uncomfortable for the mother. A normal “suck” is more like a wave motion of the tongue than a suck.

7- A sensitive gag reflex

When the tongue is tethered too tightly to the floor of the mouth, the baby’s palate doesn’t receive a normal amount of stimulation, which can result in an overly sensitive gag reflex.

8- Uncoordinated sucking motion

When you put your finger in a tongue-tied baby’s mouth, often the sucking motion will be uncoordinated and uneven, and they may break suction often. This can be frustrating for the baby, resulting in fussiness at the breast, and it can also be very exhausting, tiring baby out before getting a full feed.

9- Poor weight gain

If mom doesn’t have a strong milk letdown, a tongue-tied baby can struggle to gain weight. If mom has a good letdown, sometimes a baby with a tongue-tie can still thrive and gain weight well—but may experience other non-weight-related symptoms (more info on that below.)

10- Digestive problems

Because of the difficulty a tongue-tied baby has forming and maintaining a proper seal around the breast they tend to swallow a lot of extra air, which can result in gassiness, excessive spit-up, and reflux-like symptoms.

11- Irritability or colic

This is often related to #10, or caused by baby simply being hungry because they can’t get a full feed. Even in the absence of obvious gassiness, stomach discomfort from excess air intake can manifest itself as colic or general irritability.

12- Recessed chin

An unrevised tongue-tie can cause a recessed chin, though some babies will have this without a tongue-tie simply due to genetics.

13- High, narrow palate

A fully functional tongue rests against the roof of the mouth when the mouth is closed, which helps the palate develop the proper shape. A tongue-tie can prevent the tongue from resting against the palate, which can cause it to develop a high and/or narrow shape.

14- Reoccurring Clogged Ducts or Mastitis

A dysfunctional tongue will have the overall result of preventing the baby from transferring milk well, and properly draining the breast. This can result in mastitis, as clogged ducts in the breast can lead to painful and potentially dangerous infections.

Signs Your Baby Has A Tongue-Tie!

Tongue-ties (ankyloglossia) are caused by an unusually tight band of tissue anchoring the tongue to the floor of the mouth. This restricts the tongue’s normal function, which can cause breastfeeding issues in infants, as well as speech, dental, and airway issues later on.

Here are the things to look for. Please remember that a baby with a tongue-tie may only have one of these signs, but they may also have many of these signs.

1- Breastfeeding hurts

Breastfeeding is not supposed to hurt. If it does, then something is wrong. Sometimes it’s simply a latch issue—but babies that have consistent difficulty latching correctly are often experiencing this because of a tongue- and/or lip-tie. Tongue-ties and lip-ties often go hand in hand. If your baby cannot flange their upper lip over the breast, this is a sign of a lip-tie—and an indicator that a tongue-tie is likely also present.

2- Cracked, bleeding nipples

Often, when a baby has a tongue-tie, the tongue is unable to draw the breast tissue into the baby’s soft palate, causing nipple damage from rubbing on the hard palate. Good positioning and using the ‘breast sandwich’ technique can help with this some of the time.

3- Misshapen nipples

Often, after a feed the mother’s nipples will look like the tip of a lipstick bullet, or have a crease on the end.

4- Frustration at the breast

A tongue-tied baby often gets frustrated at the breast, and may break latch frequently, because they are unable to transfer milk efficiently.

5- Clicking sounds while nursing

 A tongue-tied baby is often unable to form a proper seal around the breast, which results in clicking sounds as suction breaks repeatedly.

6- Too much suction

When the tongue is dysfunctional as a result of a tongue-tie, a baby will often attempt to compensate for this by sucking harder. This excess vacuum can be exhausting for the baby, and uncomfortable for the mother. A normal “suck” is more like a wave motion of the tongue than a suck.

7- A sensitive gag reflex

When the tongue is tethered too tightly to the floor of the mouth, the baby’s palate doesn’t receive a normal amount of stimulation, which can result in an overly sensitive gag reflex.

8- Uncoordinated sucking motion

When you put your finger in a tongue-tied baby’s mouth, often the sucking motion will be uncoordinated and uneven, and they may break suction often. This can be frustrating for the baby, resulting in fussiness at the breast, and it can also be very exhausting, tiring baby out before getting a full feed.

9- Poor weight gain

If mom doesn’t have a strong milk letdown, a tongue-tied baby can struggle to gain weight. If mom has a good letdown, sometimes a baby with a tongue-tie can still thrive and gain weight well—but may experience other non-weight-related symptoms (more info on that below.)

10- Digestive problems

Because of the difficulty a tongue-tied baby has forming and maintaining a proper seal around the breast they tend to swallow a lot of extra air, which can result in gassiness, excessive spit-up, and reflux-like symptoms.

11- Irritability or colic

This is often related to #10, or caused by baby simply being hungry because they can’t get a full feed. Even in the absence of obvious gassiness, stomach discomfort from excess air intake can manifest itself as colic or general irritability.

12- Recessed chin

An unrevised tongue-tie can cause a recessed chin, though some babies will have this without a tongue-tie simply due to genetics.

13- High, narrow palate

A fully functional tongue rests against the roof of the mouth when the mouth is closed, which helps the palate develop the proper shape. A tongue-tie can prevent the tongue from resting against the palate, which can cause it to develop a high and/or narrow shape.

14- Reoccurring Clogged Ducts or Mastitis

A dysfunctional tongue will have the overall result of preventing the baby from transferring milk well, and properly draining the breast. This can result in mastitis, as clogged ducts in the breast can lead to painful and potentially dangerous infections.

Our Services!

Laser Frenectomy Treatment

Children may be born with a combination of conditions called a tongue-tie (ankyloglossia) and/or a lip-tie causing restrictions in movement that can cause difficulty with breastfeeding, and in some instances, other health problems like dental decay or spacing, speech and airway difficulties, and digestive issues.

During a frenotomy, laser light vaporizes the frenum under the tongue or upper lip to allow for better range of motion. With very little discomfort and almost no bleeding, some babies and children sleep through the procedure. The laser sterilizes upon touch, reducing the chance of infection and stimulating healing.

Tongue-Tie

Ankyloglossia, or tongue-tie, is the restriction of tongue movement as a result of fusion or adherence of the tongue to the floor of the mouth. A tongue-tie is therefore caused by a frenum that is abnormally short or attached too close to the tip of the tongue.

Normal tongue function allows a baby to latch adequately and breastfeed efficiently, promotes normal speech development, makes it possible for a child to self-cleanse the mouth during eating, allows adequate swallowing patterns, allows for proper growth and development, and it makes fun little things like eating ice cream, kissing or sticking your tongue out to catch snowflakes possible.

Lip-Tie

Lip-Tie

A lip-tie occurs when the upper lip remains attached to the upper gum. It can lead to problems with speech and eating habits, jaw pain and protusion, clicking jaws, difficulty kissing, licking lollipops or ice cream, a gap between teeth, pain with breastfeeding, and other oral health issues.

Breastfeeding Solutions

Breastfeeding Solutions

Both Tongue-ties and/or Lip-ties can create issues related to breastfeeding. A frenectomy can help mothers relieve the pain of breastfeeding and regain healthy nipples and breasts, stimulate milk production by adequate stimulation, encourage bonding with her baby, and ensure adequate feeding and growth of the baby.

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New Carrollton, MD
Washington, DC
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CHILDREN'S CHOICE • PEDIATRIC DENTISTRY & ORTHODONTICS
8500 ANNAPOLIS RD. • STE. 213 • NEW CARROLLTON, MD 20784 • (301) 731-8510
2013 BUNKER HILL ROAD NE • WASHINGTON, DC 20018 • (202) 410-0088
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