Pediatric Dental Care & Tongue Tie Treatment Throughout Greenwich, Stamford, & Darien, CT

At Around The World Pediatric Dentistry, we are proud to be able to provide all the necessary pediatric dental care and special needs dentistry to the surrounding Stamford, Darien, and Greenwich, CT communities. For years we have been able to help give parents peace of mind that their children’s oral health and hygiene is on track, as it can be difficult to get young children to take care of their teeth and mouth. Children are often in scenarios where germs are plentiful, therefore making sure you bring your child in for routine cleanings and treat any signs of an infection or issue when you first notice, is crucial.

Even if you do not realize there could be an issue, bringing your children into our dental office allows our team to inspect your child’s health, and offer a thorough assessment of their oral heath status and provide you with an individualized plan for your child.

Signs My Child Has a Tongue Tie

Tongue ties are not uncommon, and while it can be stressful to find out that your child has a tongue tie, our dental office is here to assure you that the process of removing the tongue tie can be simple, quick, and improve the quality of life for your child. Bringing your child to the dentist from an early age can help to determine if a tongue tie is present, but there are also some other signs that you can look out for.

  • Difficulty with breastfeeding or bottle-feeding: When a tongue tie is present, latching and sucking from the nipple or a bottle can be a struggle. While tongue ties are not the only reason a child may have a difficult time feeding, it can be a sign to investigate. Older children may choke, gag, spit out food and often will “graze” on foods throughout the day and also eat quite slowly. Sometimes a tongue tie will cause children to be picky eaters, especially with textures, and soft, mushy foods and meats typically create a struggle for them.
  • Difficulty moving the tongue: Due to the extra skin attached to the tongue, your child may struggle to move their tongue within their mouth, and the range of motion could be limited.
  • Trouble sticking out the tongue: If your child doesn’t seem to be able to stick their tongue outside of their mouth or can’t seem to stick it out past their bottom lip, this is another sign that the range of motion is being limited due to a tongue tie.
  • Unable to make specific letter sounds: When your tongue has a limited range of motion, making certain letter sounds such as the “t”, “d”, “l”, “r”, “n”, “z”, “sh” and “th” sounds may not be possible. While speech troubles aren’t always related to a tongue tie, it can be a sign that there could be limitations due to the tongue tie.
  • Sleep Issues: A tongue-tied child will often grind his/her teeth at night, snore or experience other breathing problems. This is due to the tongue falling back to narrow or block the child’s airway and will cause frequent waking, restlessness, bed-wetting, and not waking up refreshed.

Tongue Tie Treatment Solutions

When you have determined that your child does have a tongue tie, finding a pediatric dentistry office that will remove it safely and carefully is likely at the top of your priority list. At Around The World Pediatric Dentistry, Dr. Hannah Ahn has years of education and experience under her belt and has performed tongue tie treatment procedures that have drastically improved children’s quality of life. The procedure is performed in her office using a CO2 laser, and the pain and discomfort are minimal due to the proper preparation and numbing agents used. There is little downtime and healing timelines, therefore your child can return to normal daily habits often within a few hours.

If you have any concerns about the possibility of your child having a tongue tie, or the procedure to remove it, please do not hesitate to reach out to our office. We are always happy to assist our local Stamford, Greenwich, & Darien, CT community members.