Lip Tied/Tongue Tied

Frenectomy for lip tie and tongue tie in Lake Ozark and CamdentonChildren are occasionally born with a lip tied or tongue-tied attachment that inhibits their ability to nurse with mom or on a bottle. Often immediately after they are born, many physicians will want to clip those but Dr. Massie does not recommend that. Because children lay passive more than adults, they don’t talk and utilize their mouths and most often those attachments heal back and have to be repeated at a later time in life. Dr. Massie recommends that through maternal nursing, the mother determine if the baby is unable to suckle and/or the if baby is very uncomfortable digestively. Digestive discomfort can be caused by an extreme amount of air being taken in when the baby cannot latch and remain latched. Other complications that can come from this include breathing problems, speech problems, tooth decay problems and jaw development complications.

A simple procedure called a frenectomy can be performed with a laser. Because of how a laser works, it does not allow the tissue to heal back. Dr. Massie has had to do that procedure on many of his own family members which is why he has a real interest in helping children and adults through this process. The laser is not a cutting procedure but a vaporization procedure and is done with topical anesthetics. The laser is a sterile type of process with very good results. Healing is very quick and the body tolerates use of a laser the best of any type of surgical procedure.