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Infant feeding

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Original poster

Tongue tie - to snip or not? Might it resolve itself?

41 replies

sushistar · 31/01/2010 18:43

Hi all
DS2 is 5 days and has quite a clear tongue tie. It's not causing me any huge pain, just mild discomfort, but it is making his latch inefficient - he breaks the seal al the breast a lot and 'slurps' air, and doesn't take a big mouthful of breat like his brother did. He hasn't been weighed yet so I don't know if he's gaining weight (although of course being only 5 days he may well have lost it regardless of the tie). I'm undecided whether to get it snipped or not.

For:
It would improve his latch (hopefully) and therefore the amount of milk he gets
It might remove the mild discomfort I have (although this is mild so it's not a big issue)
Cons:
I think it probably hurts them a lot more than people think
It's not causing HUGE problems so I don't want it done unneccesarily
It might resolve itself? Don't know if this is true?

What do you think? I really don't know what to do.

OP posts:
OmicronPersei8 · 31/01/2010 18:52

DS has tongue tie which we never got snipped, BUT he has breastfed and put weight on ok (still does at 22 months!).If there had been more issues maybe I would have pushed for it. I know for some people it really helps with feeding.

I did though, have to concentrate really hard to get him latched well - the first few weeks were a little painful as there was a bit too much sucking rather than suckling (which I knew as he is a DC2). However, no HCP has ever even commented on the tongue tie, so maybe it's quite mild.

Sorry if that's not really useful, have you spoken to your midwife/gp/hv about it?

OmicronPersei8 · 31/01/2010 18:56

I should add that he still has it - when he sticks his tongue out it clearly dips inward in the middle (as does his lower lip). I'm going to keep an eye on his speech but all seems well at the moment. I can't imagine that it will change of its own accord though. I do worry slightly that if any issues come up and he has to get it snipped, it will be much more traumatic than if he'd had it done as a baby.

Original poster
sushistar · 31/01/2010 18:58

havn't spoken to hcp about it - i recognised it myself (I did a breastfeeding peer supporter course when ds1 was little) and took him to breastfeeding group - the counsellor there said it was quite a clear tie. it is affecting his latch - but i don't know how much it's affecting the amount of milk he's getting.

He's a much quieter, sleepier baby than ds 1 and that worries me a bit, as I think maybe if he wasn't getting enough he wouldn't let me know? He's feeding every 2-3 hrs - I wake him if he goes longer than that - and mostly mjust sleeps in between. I'm finding it a bit disconcerting as DS1 fed hourly and grizzled in between feeds!

OP posts:
OmicronPersei8 · 31/01/2010 19:05

It's so hard to know, isn't it? DD was a sleepy baby - we used to joke that we never saw her with her eyes open. Of course it all changed by about 8 weeks, but when you have a second you realise just how different they all are.

Maybe a breastfeeding counsellor or lactation consultant would be of help here (don't really know, just wondering)?

I found I had to get a good bit of boob and shove it in so that he didn't just work on the nipple - it got better as he got bigger. But that was us, don't know what the best course of action is for you.

daxibaby · 31/01/2010 19:13

I would contact a Lactation Consultant as they are the best people to diagnose and assess his feeding.
Not paeds as they don't think that tongue ties have any bearing on b/f! What bollocks!

MrsJohnDeere · 31/01/2010 19:15

3.9 yo ds1 had a tongue tie which was snipped to help with bf (which I really struggled with). In his case it didn't help at all BUT I have recently found out that it wasn't done properly (Consultant didn't snip far enough back) so he now has to have an operation under full anaesthetic to do it properly.

In ds1's case it hasn't hindered his language at all (which it can do, apparently)but he dribbles a bit when he says certain sounds, he can't move his tongue from side to side or upwards (his pre-school spotted this and got a referral to a SALT) so makes a mess eating things like yoghurt, he snores very loudly, and he is a terrible eater generally (because he struggles to eat hot food or anything that requires the use of his tongue).

He had his original snip at Bedford Hospital so I don't think I'd recommend having it done there!

Original poster
sushistar · 31/01/2010 19:17

Sorry, I have seen a breastfeeding counsellor, who diagnosed tongue tie. I just have to decide if I want him to have the procedure, as it's not causing big problems, just mild ones...

OP posts:
lou031205 · 31/01/2010 19:18

DD1 was snipped at 5 days old, she slept through it, literally.

My nephew had his done at 20 months, General Anaesthetic & stitches.

Original poster
sushistar · 31/01/2010 19:18

But obviously those problems might get worse - or they might resolve themselves. It's difficult!

OP posts:
londonmackem · 31/01/2010 19:22

Do it now as it causes much less pain and upset and ensures that your son has none of the side effects. 3/8 of my baby group have had it and all had the snip with no problems. Difficult to lick ice cream cornet if have tongue tie!

MrsJohnDeere · 31/01/2010 19:24

I would do it. When ds1 had his done (albeit inadequately ) he cried for about 5 seconds then was fine.

Much bigger deal when they're older and are aware of what is going on.

thumbwitch · 31/01/2010 19:25

DS had his done at 2 weeks. Didn't hurt him at all, didn't even whimper, fed straight afterwards, not a problem. He only had a partial tonguetie but having it snipped improved his latch and ability to feed enormously (plus reduced my pain). Best decision, no contest.

DH has a tonguetie. It hasn't caused him any major problems in life but he does have lazy pronunciation and his kissing ability is somewhat lacking but hey! Who cares.

My friend missed that her DS had tonguetie - his speech was quite badly affected and he had it done at age 3, GA and stitches plus a lot of soreness for a week.

It won't resolve itself, and you can't know how badly it will affect him until it's too late to have it done easily. So - I would get it done in a heartbeat.

PiratePrincess · 31/01/2010 19:26

I think it really is completely up to you and how your DC is.

My DS was also diagnosed with it and we did get it done - it's so quick (seconds) and for him it made a huge difference. He fed much easier and has no speech problems at all.

The thing is, it may be easier for you as if he's having problems (even small) feeding, he may need to feed constantly if he's not getting enough at a time - if that makes sense?! That may be really hard for you later on.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

wifeofdoom · 31/01/2010 19:39

I have a 3/4 tie and my dd did too - I had it snipped as she couldn't latch - unfortunately it didn't help. But she can now stick her tongue out much better than me! I don't eat ice cream in a cone - apart from that it deson't bother me, but the snip didn't bother her either!

Ekka · 31/01/2010 19:42

Dd had tongue-tie and we had it cut at 10 days. She was screaming like mad when I took her into the room, but when the consultant smiled at her she calmed down and fell asleep as it was being done .

It made her feeding much better, but even if it hadn't I would still have had it done as the risk of speech problems would have worried me. As it is, no speech problems and she can roll her tongue brilliantly, which is currently her favourite trick

CornishKK · 31/01/2010 19:45

I had my DS son tongue tie cut when he was 8 days as he couldn't BF at all. It was an horrific experience for both of us and caused him all sorts of further problems feeding - for 24 hours following "the snip" he could only cupfeed. He had an open wound the size if a 20p under his tongue and it obviously hurt him. We never managed to successfully breastfeed and I took him to a cranial osteopath for six month afterwards to help with the problems it caused.

I wish I hadn't listened to the "it doesn't hurt, some babies sleep through it" bullshit.

If my next child has tongue tie I will not have it cut.

If you can breastfeed without and your little one is thriving then I'd say leave it.

Good luck.

thumbwitch · 31/01/2010 20:34

Cornish, for you that you and your DS had a bad experience but that doesn't mean that everyone else's positive experience is bullshit.

hanaflower · 31/01/2010 20:42

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

GoingRodeoBaby · 31/01/2010 20:47

My DD1 had it mildly. It affected her latch and feeding. Had the snip(!) and it was less traumatic than her immunisations. It can affect speech later in life so well worth a small amount of disomfort (mostly yours) in the short term to avoid long term issues (his) in the future.

Wheelybug · 31/01/2010 20:52

I waited until 9 weeks because although dd2 was my second I hadn't been able to bf dd1 so I thought the discomfort was just a 'normal' part of breastfeeding. DD2 was gaining weight albeit slowly so I didn't think there was much need.

However, as others said the trauma was less than immunisations (dd had her snip the day after her first lot of imms), the discomfort went almost immediately and her weight gain improved. I didn't want to have to have a more serious procedure if it caused problems in the future.

GrumpyWhenWoken · 31/01/2010 20:57

my ds2 had tt which I missed until he was about 10 months old, and he was exclusively BF, and I hadn't noticed any problems (although I had mastitus a few times which may have been caused by this).

I did get it done as soon as he was 1 and old enough for the general. He was up and eating crisps and an egg sandwich within 5 mins of waking up - no pain or discomfort at all.

The reasons I had for getting it done were:-

The tongue is a muscle and to leave it any later, and see if he had a speech impediment (as my gp wanted to do) would have meant learning to talk all over again. I couldn't see any reason to wait when to have it done when he was so little was easy and painless.

It's up to you, but if you google tt and read some of the stories from children who have had it done later in life, you'll see that some people do find this very difficult.

PatTheHammer · 31/01/2010 21:00

My DS had quite a large tie snipped at 5 weeks, he didn't cry much but he did bleed a fair bit and it was sore for 24hrs after. then all was well.

Like you I didn't have that many probs breastfeeding, just 'clicking' and unlatching a lot, making the feeds longer but he put on loads of weight. Anyway after the initial soreness had gone breastfeeding was the easiest and quickest thing in the world, he gulped it down, made it so much better even though i hadn't thought t was that bad in the first place.

My main reasons for doing it were to avoid possible problems later (kissing, eating yoghurt, snoring, speech etc) I just didn't want to feel like I could have done something and then never did.

So nobody can decide for you and the honest truth is that it does hurt them a bit, but they wont remember it a few days later and it definitely wont traumatise them.

good luck

gaelicsheep · 31/01/2010 21:02

Personally I would get it snipped, but that's because of my own experience of horrendously painful breastfeeding and a tongue tie that went undiagnosed until DS was 4.5 months (too late by then, was mixed feeding and the milk had all but gone).

This time around I will personally be checking for tongue tie once (s)he is born, getting it double and triple checked and any sign of it will be snipped straight away. Assuming they offer that service here of course. I discovered that where I used to live they wouldn't have snipped anyway, despite my agonising pain, as none of them were trained.

If it's not causing you too much bother perhaps you'll get away with it. DS's snapped of it's own accord some time around 7 or 8 months. I only noticed when he could suddenly raise his tongue properly - no blood or anything.

llareggub · 31/01/2010 21:11

My HV noticed my DS's TT at around 2 weeks. Breastfeeding has never been a problem and I've never had any pain.

After discussing it with the HV, GP, SALT and the specialist MW in TT, I decided not to snip but to assess again around 9 months. The SALT told me to call back if he didn't start babbling "ma ma" "ba ba" etc and they'd start therapy or snip.

He is now 9 months, still breastfed and his tongue has either grown or it has started to stretch. He has had no problems with solids (I've sort of done BLW) so I don't have any concerns. He is babbling well.

Obviously if I do notice any problems with speech we'll be looking for help, but policy around here is not to snip unless there are feeding problems.

CornishKK · 31/01/2010 23:01

Sorry Thumbwitch, hadn't read through all the replies to the OP so I was not aware of posters here having first hand experience of the sleeping through. No offence intended.

My son had his snipped at King's, they do a large group of babies at the same time - every baby came out screaming. We were not allowed to be there when the procedure was done, DS was handed back to me with a bloodied dressing hanging out of his mouth, blood smeared across his face. I was annoyed that the procedure had been so trivialised in the descriptions I had from GP, BF support etc.

I'm glad so many people had a positive experience.

Personally I feel farking awful that I let that happen to my PFB and it didn't help him BF.