How to determine in time that a child has a short frenulum

Among children, the pathology of the oral structure in the form of a short frenulum of the tongue, called ankyloglossia, is common.

Often, the shortened bridle of the tongue is detected in newborns immediately after birth, when examined in a maternity hospital.

The pathology is recognized quite simply: normally a thin cord connecting the tongue and the lower oral cavity reaches the middle of the tongue, while the abnormal bridle is attached to its tip.

It also happens that the bridle is practically absent and the tongue fuses with the lower part of the mouth.

Prerequisites for the development of the

violation Half the time, ankyloglossia is diagnosed in children whose mother and father( orone of the parents) had similar problems. Pathology in the embryo develops in the mother's womb in the first half of pregnancy due to:

• absence or untimely therapy in the future mother of the viral disease in the 1 and 2 trimesters;
• treatment of antibiotic diseases;
• work with chemical reagents( paints, varnishes, solutions);
• frequent stressful conditions;
• of the age of the future mother( over 35 years);
• adverse ecology.

Varieties of abnormal frenum

Five types of short hyoid bridles are identified:

• is a transparent thin, fettering movement of the tongue;
• thin translucent, fixed by anterior margin almost at the tip of the tongue;
• thick opaque, fixed near the edge of the tongue;
• a short and dense screed connected to the muscles of the tongue( a common anomaly in children suffering from palatal and labial crevices);
• fold, fused with lingual muscles.

Symptomatology and signs of pathology

It is easy to determine the short bridle of the tongue from the first days of a child's life. The main and first sign of the disease are difficulties in breastfeeding.

To suck milk from the maternal breast, a newborn needs to make serious efforts, using other than the language other organs. The tongue irritates the mother's nipple, resulting in the secretion of breast milk.

With a shortened bridle, this process is rather complicated and many children are trying to compensate for low mobility of the tongue with gums and lips, which is quite difficult for both the child and the mother.

The left normal bridle, on the right - pathological

The baby quickly becomes tired, the mother feels discomfort during feeding, the process of breastfeeding is disrupted, meals become frequent, long and restless with breaks for rest.

When applying to the maternal breast, the child is capricious, arches, tilts the head, or even abandons the breast at all. As a consequence, the baby is nervous, podobiratet in weight.

In older children and adults, because of a short frenum, the bite is broken, the sound quality of sibilants and other letters becomes more difficult, the installation of implants and dentures becomes problematic, diseases of the oral cavity develop.

Self diagnosis of the disease

Defect of the bridle is more common in boys. Parents can independently diagnose pathology themselves.

The movements of the children's tongue will be chained or the tongue will be attached to the lower jaw, the child will not be able to stick it out of the mouth.

Methods of treatment

To date, two methods of short frenulum therapy in children are in demand: conservative and operative pruning.

If you deny surgical intervention for the purpose of pruning the bridle, you can at home conduct special gymnastics, designed by speech therapists, aimed at stretching.

Exercises:

• drip some of his favorite jam on the baby's upper sponge and ask him to lick;
• close your mouth and pull your lips into the tube;
• tightly compress lips and stretch them in a smile;
• with a closed mouth to rest with the tip of the tongue alternately in the cheeks;
• stretch your lips and try to "smack" them;
• with the edge of the tongue to reach the upper and lower lips;
• tongue pull forward and move it left and right;
• it is necessary for babies to lick a silver spoon more often.

Classes are recommended to be done daily at least 5 times for 5-7 minutes.

For stretching the bridle, the speech therapist can advise you to perform a speech therapy massage. The procedure is rather unpleasant, but very effective. It is carried out absolutely clean hands, sometimes the doctor can afford to wrap his fingers with a sterile handkerchief or bandage:

1. Clamp the bridle between the thumb and forefinger and move them along the screed from the bottom up.
2. Place the middle and index fingers under the tongue so that the bridle is between them;With your thumb, press on the front of the tongue and gently pull it outward.
3. Pull the tip of the tongue alternately up and down, then gently pull the jumper upward with your index finger.
4. Place the tip of the pipette on the tip of the tongue, press the ring to the sky with the tongue and close the mouth;The exercise should be repeated thrice a day 8-10 times.

Operative solution of the

problem Surgical intervention is indicated with:

• broken bite;
• tooth displacement;
• incorrect pronunciation of sounds and letters that can not be corrected by classical methods;
• for problems with breastfeeding.

The decision on the need for surgery should be taken together by a speech therapist, surgeon and orthopedist. Many doctors believe that the bridle can stretch out on its own with age.

Newborn children bridle incised in the hospital with a special scissors. Up to 9 months of age, it does not have time to build up vessels and nerve endings, so the operation is completely painless, bloodless and conducted under local anesthesia.

Rehabilitation lasts only a couple of hours, after which the baby is applied to the maternal breast. As a result, children's appetite sharply increases.

. Senior children should undergo a bridle pruning before a full change of all milk teeth. An advantageous period is the age of 5-8 years, but in exceptional cases, the operation can be done earlier.

Before cutting, the attending physician will send the patient to the laboratory for blood and urine tests. The procedure is performed in the clinic under local anesthesia, its duration is not more than 10 minutes. To avoid possible blood loss, an electric scissor or an electrocoagulator is used.

The wound heals within 24 hours, but it is recommended to refrain from hot and solid food for several days and carefully look after the oral cavity.

A week later the child should undergo a recovery speech therapy course, consisting in training and strengthening the muscles involved in lifting the tongue, setting up disturbed sounds and fixing their correct pronunciation.

Cutting the tongue in children is much easier than in adult patients:

Consequences of ankyloglossia

Children with an abnormal frenum under the tongue are not able to gain the required body weight due to constant malnutrition, lagging behind in growth from peers. They are disturbed by the process of sucking, the newborn baby is not able to grab the mother's nipple, the process of feeding becomes lengthy, intermittent.

The photo shows a short frenum of the tongue in the child close-up

. At an older age, the child has serious problems:

• delayed development of the lower jaw;
• lower incisors gradually turn inward and injure the bridle;
• bifurcated tongue;
• inability to correctly pronounce letters and fold them into words;
• lisp;
• is a nasal voice;
• problems with falling asleep;
• intermittent sleep and snoring;
• drooling;
• indigestion and pain in it;
• gas formation and diarrhea;
• belching;
• bite disorder;
• miscarriage disorder;
• development of cervical caries, gingivitis, stomatitis, periodontitis;
• formation of oral breathing instead of nasal;
• frequent colds against a background of reduced immunity;
• curvature of the spine.

A short frenum of the tongue in a child should not cause a panic in the parents. Before deciding on an operation to trim the jumper, you need to get expert advice.

But it can not be avoided in case of diagnosing acute orthopedic or dental ailments. In other cases it is worth hoping for the experience of the doctor and his advice.

Classical methods of short frenum therapy, such as special exercises and speech therapy massage, require the application of tremendous strength and patience. Therefore, it is necessary to act, because the child's health is in the hands of his parents!