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Ankyloglossia, also known as “tongue-tie”, is a congenital condition that limits the movements of the tongue. This condition involves a shortened and tightened band of flesh that attaches the tip of the tongue to the floor of the mouth. Correcting tongue-tie involves a procedure called a frenectomy. Here is what you can do to check if your child needs this type of surgery.

Being frightened of the dentist is a fairly normal thing for children to experience. The unusual environment with strange sights, sounds and smells, unknown faces of the professionals working there, and the fear of the unknown all combine to make a trip the dentist a potentially overwhelming experience. Nevertheless, parents have a responsibility to ensure that their child receives the dental care that they need. Parents also need to ensure that their child overcomes their fear of the dentist so that they can actively attend dental appointments as they grow – something which is essential if they are to retain their natural teeth for as long as possible and enjoy good dental health throughout adulthood.   

It is estimated that as many as 18 million U.S adults suffer from sleep apnea, which is one of the most common sleep disorders in the world. Although there are several types of sleep apnea, by far the most common is obstructive sleep apnea or OSA for short. Obstructive sleep apnea is characterized by a temporary pause in the regular pattern of breathing whilst you sleep. Breathing then naturally restarts. A patient with OSA can have a single episode of interrupted breathing in a night, or more than a hundred. Exactly how long the pause lasts for can also vary, but in most instances, it will last as long as ten seconds. 

A frenectomy is a simple procedure to release a frenum. In the vast majority of frenectomies, the frenum that is released is the lingual frenum that connects the base of the tongue to the floor of the mouth. This is a particularly common procedure in babies who may find it difficult or impossible to latch on and breastfeed because their frenulum restricts the movement of their tongue. Some people refer to this as being ‘tongue-tied’. However, frenectomy procedures can also be performed on the labial frenum if it is abnormally wide or long. This is because this issue will create a space between the two front teeth.