About the disease
Ankyloglossia is a condition, whereas a tongue becomes tied. This is a congenital condition and is observed in newborns. It develops when the bottom of the tongue becomes tethered by a tight tissue. As a result, baby is unable to stick out the tongue properly and all of its motions become restricted. Such restriction does not allow a child to eat properly and to learn how to speak. It also poses challenge for breastfeeding, as tied tongue keeps a child from swallowing milk properly.
Ankyloglossia develops as a genetic condition, when a tissue, also known as lingual frenulum, does not separate right before the birth during prenatal development. As a result, child is unable to stick out the tongue, as there is no natural division between its bottom and upper part. The exact cause of ankyloglossia is not known, although this condition is believed to be more common among baby boys. Its first manifestations appear during the breastfeeding. If a case is mild, ankyloglossia can be diagnosed already when a child learns how to speak and has difficulty pronouncing certain words and vowels. This condition can be treated only surgically and it needs to be treated otherwise it poses danger to overall health of a child. If a child is unable to be breastfed, he/she can experience certain problems with nutrition and not to be able to develop properly. A baby with ankyloglossia can also chew on a nipple of a mother instead of simply sucking on it, thus causing mother to feel pain in the nipple.Ankyloglossia can also lead to inflammation of the gums and other stomatologic infections, that`s why parents are advised to have their child's tongue surgically repaired in the first months or years of a child's life.
Symptoms
- Child is unable to lift or curl the tongue
- Inability to swallow milk
- Tongue is visibly heart-shaped
- Child is unable to pronounce words when a time comes to learn how to speak
- Difficulty eating
Diagnosis
During physical examination a doctor will examine the tongue of a patient with a special tool, which would allow the doctor to view tongue from different angles and to determine if it is indeed tied. He will also check for sores and inflammation of the gums, which could have developed with ankyloglossia. General examination is usually enough to determine the extent of ankyloglossia and confirm the diagnosis.
Treatment
Laser plastic repair is a surgery used for treatment of ankyloglossia in both babies and little children. The age of a child who undergoes surgery depends on an individual case. This is a minimally invasive technique used to resolve the tied tongue. This surgery can be performed in outpatient setting and a child does not need to have anesthesia to undergo this procedure. Moreover, the healing time after laser plastic is also very short and after few days child will be able to swallow food properly and pronounce the vowels without having any difficulties. All in all, this surgery has very good results and it rarely places any danger, whereas a traditional surgery for this case can have such complications as gum inflammation and so on.
Authors: Dr. Vadim Zhiliuk, Dr. Sergey Pashchenko
