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Laser surgery can seem scary, especially when performed on your infant. While some dentists may recommend that you wait if your baby has a maxillary frenum, Dr. Judy Strutz recommends taking care of this early on. While initially your baby may be impacted negatively right away with decreased ability to eat correctly, as they get older their ability to speak correctly may also be impacted.
Children that enter school with a frenum may be unable to correctly pronounce certain sounds. If a child by the age of five is unable to pronounce certain sounds correctly they may never be able to say them quite right. Children can be teased or become frustrated when peers ask them to repeat what they are saying. Curriculum requirements mean that students are reading at earlier ages then years ago and are required to orally express their thoughts and understanding of problems. Dr. Strutz states, “While they may struggle to correctly speak due to the thin piece of skin between their teeth, it can also decrease their self-esteem, causing them to speak in school less and less.” An inability to express their understanding of a problem has a tremendous impact on their overall educational opportunities and could impact them for years to come. If your child has a frenum, now is the time to get it evaluated. Laser surgery can help save you and your baby from hours of sleepless nights, gas and nursing pain. When your baby is born and you are staring at their perfectly formed ten fingers and ten toes, you may not notice the frenum - a thick piece of skin that attaches the lip to the roof of the mouth and another that attaches the tongue to the bottom of the mouth. This piece of skin should not obstruct movement of the tongue, but many times it does.
Some may suggest you wait to have surgery as the skin may fix itself, but when you are nursing your baby, it can become a problem for your child and you. A lip tie or tongue-tie may mean that your baby will have difficulty correctly latching on to the nipple. In order for you baby to have the proper attachment when eating, the tongue needs to be in the correct position. A frenum, can decrease the movement in the tongue when a baby is trying to eat, which can become painful. Babies can cause sleep deprived mothers and fathers under normal conditions, if they are not eating correctly or if they are in pain, this can cause them and you to get even less sleep. Surgery for this can be done using lasers and completed when your baby is just a few days or weeks old. For more information on laser surgery, contact Dr. Judy Strutz today. Tongue-tie can negatively impact the amazing experience of breastfeeding. In order for your baby to latch on correctly their tongue needs to be in a position where the tongue is against the back of the mouth at the roof. If the thick piece of skin that attaches their tongue to the lower part of their mouth is too thick, it will create a barrier for their tongue to move efficiently in the mouth. As they attempt to latch on, the tongue-tie may cause them to latch on to the side of the breast instead of the nipple.
If your baby is able to latch on to the nipple, it may still be an issue. When the latch is not quite right it can be painful for you and eventually cause your baby to overcompensate and suck harder. “This takes effort on your infant’s part. Once he is unable to keep up the strength it takes to hold onto the nipple that hard, he may let go,” says Dr. Judith Strutz. “If he lets go too soon, there may be more milk remaining in the breast, causing an increase of pain and soreness for the mother. Your baby will have also not received enough nutrition and then may quickly become hungry again. Depending on the thickness of the frenum, some babies are not able to latch to the breast at all. While breastfeeding under normal circumstances can cause stress, this situation can create unnecessary strain on you during breastfeeding. Don’t give up. Instead get help. Contact Dr. Strutz & her team today and have your child evaluated for a lip or tongue tie.. Frena is the membranous fold that attaches and restricts the movement of a muscle. In the mouth there are two frena. The plural form of frena is frenum. The first one is located between the inside of the upper lip and the gums. If you slide your tongue up, you can feel the thick piece of skin. While the thickness varies among individuals it should not be between the two front teeth or restrict the tongue from moving back and forward in the mouth.
The bottom frena should allow free movement of the tongue up and down and should not cause any pain when you move it around. When your baby is born, you may notice that the frena is thicker and restricts movement, “This is referred to as being tongue-tied,” says Dr. Judith Strutz. This is one sign that may require surgery. While surgery sounds scary for a baby, lasers make this procedure safe and can help to ensure that breastfeeding is successful. If your baby is struggling to latch onto the nipple during breastfeeding, causing pain and lack of a proper suction you may want to look in their mouth. The frenum should not restrict tongue movement. Your baby should be able to freely move the tongue towards the back of the throat and roof of the mouth. Contact Dr. Strutz and her team today for more information. When your baby is born it can be difficult and stressful to wrap your mind around them having surgery. While some doctors may tell you that you can wait to have the surgery, or there is no reason to rush, waiting for your baby to have maxillary frenum surgery can negatively impact them especially as they get older. Dr. Judith Strutz, recommends "It is often better to have the surgery soon after they are born.”
1. A frenum can impact your child's ability to put on weight. Babies lose about half of their weight after they are born and eating is critical for them to get their weight back up. If your baby struggles to latch on to the breast correctly, they can get air in their belly, which makes them think they are not hungry. Then just a few minutes later they can think they are hungry again. But never really get the amount of food they need. 2. A baby needs about sixteen hours of sleep throughout the day. When they are not getting enough food to fill up their belly they may not sleep as much as they need, or they may wake up often crying to eat. Then they eat a little, go back to sleep and wake up just a few minutes later with a hungry belly to repeat this negative cycle all over again. 3. A baby who is not sleeping and eating, can become restless and difficult to console. When it is more difficult to calm them down, it can increase the stress for both the parents and baby. This negative cycle can decrease your child’s ability to be happy and enjoy a calm atmosphere. Contact Dr. Judith Strutz and her team today for more information about your baby's tongue-tie. Don’t let time waste! Some dentists and research may tell you that there is no reason to jump the gun and have your baby gets laser surgery for their maxillary frenum, but Dr. Strutz suggests it is important to take care of it as soon as possible. While your baby is growing and developing, it is not only critical for their overall health and development to be able to sleep and eat properly, but once they begin talking a maxillary frenum can impact their ability to say certain sounds.
Certain sounds when they are made require the tongue to be in a certain location in the mouth. Some sounds are made at the front of the mouth, while others are at the back. Another set of sounds requires the tongue to push up against the teeth to correctly say. If your child has a frenum that is thick, it can restrict the movement of the tongue. Once your child enters the age of talking, it is critical that they receive access to proper language models and are able to properly say sounds. Children who have speech impairments can be impacted in the long term in school and may experience depression, school trouble and delays in reading. For more information on surgery, contact Dr. Strutz & her team today! Breastfeeding is an amazing opportunity for moms to take care of their baby. It can be more than just eating. Breastfeeding is a way to build a strong, safe and loving bond from the early days of life. It can help you to feel a strong connection to your child and for them to know they are always going to be taken care of and loved.
While your body, as a new mom, is ready to feed and nourish her, sometimes it’s not as easy as just your baby latching on and eating. Dr.Strutz says, “A tongue-tie or lip tie can cause problems for both you and your child.” Milk production is based on supply and demand. Latch problems can negatively impact your infant when they are attempting to eat. An improper latch on the nipple can cause your little one to attempt to eat but not be able to get enough milk. They may latch onto the side of the breast, or sometimes hold loosely onto the nipple, sucking. This can cause the nipple to become sore and chapped. While your infant holding onto the side of the breast can cause lesions, rough skin and an inability to produce the amount of milk you need for them to sustain a healthy weight. For more information on lip and tongue-ties contact Dr. Judy Strutz & her team. The amount of milk your body produces when you are breastfeeding is based on several different factors. How healthy you eat, the amount of water you consume, your overall stress, and how well your baby is eating. After birth, the goal for your child is to regain their birth weight. Babies often lose about 7 to 10% of their body weight in the first few days after they are born. Babies impacted by a lip or tongue-tie may lose more weight than that, as they try to navigate how to properly eat.
Once your baby is latched on, they need to continually suck in order for them to get milk. While when they first latch on they get a little bit of milk as you let down, they must work for the milk to continue. Dr.Strutz suggests, “Babies with tongue or lip-ties, may not be latched on properly. This means that they are unable to work correctly to get additional milk after the initial let-down. If your baby does not continue sucking, your milk supply can begin to dry up because your body does not believe that it needs to make more milk. If your baby is latching on but you are not releasing enough milk it can also lead to mastitis or blockage in a mammary duct. This blockage can be very painful and require antibiotics to clear up the infection. During this time, breastfeeding may not only be painful for you, but can continue to decrease your supply if you are not able to breastfeed through the mastitis. We now know how to help many mothers successfully nurse. If you have questions, or to have your child evaluated for a lip or tongue tie, contact Dr. Judy Strutz & her team today. |
AuthorDr. Judith Strutz performs laser surgery on infants and children who suffer from lip and tongue ties. ArchivesCategories |
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