3 Reasons Why Your Baby May Need Tongue-Tie Laser Surgery

When your baby is born with tongue or lip tie it can impact their ability to properly latch onto the breast when eating. At first you may think it is just you and something that you are doing, but before you jump to conclusions, take a look inside their mouth. A lip or tongue-tie restricts movement and is associated with a thick piece of tissue that attaches the lip to the upper teeth, or the tongue to the floor of the mouth. If you think your child may suffer from a lip or tongue-tie, Dr. Judy Strutz recommends giving her a call and scheduling a consult. If your baby is unable to latch to the breast properly, you may want to consider laser surgery. It can be very painful if they are latching onto the side of the breast or only holding onto the nipple.

Breastfeeding is built on a supply and demand system. The more you produce, the more your baby eats, and the more they eat the more you produce. If your baby is unable to latch on to the breast completely, your body can think they are no longer eating and your body may begin to reduce the amount of milk you are producing. Or you may end up with a bacteria infection called mastitis because of your baby’s inability to latch onto the breast and fully drain the milk.

As your baby gets older, a lip or tongue-tie may impact their speech and ability to say certain sounds. Sounds like Th or Wh are said with the tongue in a particular location. The thickness of the tongue-tie will determine how much or how little they are able to move their tongue within their mouth.

It is never easy when you are a new parent and you have to consider whether it is in your baby’s best interests to receive surgery. But laser surgery does make that choice easier. For more information contact Dr.Strutz and her team today.