Common Problems after Tongue Tie Surgery

There are many complications after tongue-tie surgery, including thickening of the tongue or difficulty in tongue movement, as well as tongue pain, which may affect the baby's eating. Therefore, surgery should be performed to avoid tongue retraction, which may affect the therapeutic effect of the surgery. After tongue-tie surgery, we should pay attention to oral hygiene and conduct postoperative observation. Mothers should follow the postoperative care recommended by the doctor.

Complications of tongue tie surgery

Tongue-tie surgery is usually done when children are young, and it is rarely done on adults. Tongue-tie surgery is a minor operation with no side effects. It will only affect eating to some extent, but there is no pain. However, you need to pay attention to oral hygiene and surgical incision care. If the surgical incision becomes infected and the scar shrinks significantly, it will easily pull the tongue and cause the tip of the tongue to retract, and the operation will be in vain.

Things to know about tongue tie surgery

The duration of surgery depends on the attachment location and thickness of the child's tongue tie. Treatment of tongue tie can be done through outpatient topical anesthesia, inhalation sedation anesthesia, or general anesthesia in the ward.

Outpatient topical anesthesia is suitable for children with thin tongue frenulum and loose attachment. Generally, children over 6 months old can undergo surgery. Outpatient topical anesthesia surgery process: specialist doctor's evaluation and diagnosis - routine blood test - no abnormalities, topical anesthesia surgery - 15 minutes of observation of the surgical site for no active bleeding - discharge.

Outpatient inhalation sedation anesthesia is used for children with thick and tightly attached tongue frenulum. Considering that there will be more bleeding during the operation and that children who are too young may choke on the trachea and cause suffocation, the age limit is 2 years old or older. Outpatient inhalation sedation anesthesia surgery process: specialist doctor evaluation and diagnosis - appointment registration - blood test on the morning of the scheduled surgery for routine blood tests, coagulation function, and electrocardiogram - no abnormalities - anesthesiologist on-site evaluation - inhalation sedation anesthesia + local anesthesia surgery - 30 minutes of observation of the surgical site for no active bleeding - discharge from the hospital.

General anesthesia surgery is suitable for children with severe tongue fixation, obvious adhesions after the first-stage tongue fixation surgery, extreme uncooperativeness, obvious pharyngeal reflex and easy vomiting, or parents who are worried that the children will be frightened due to binding. The process of general anesthesia surgery: specialist doctor's evaluation and diagnosis - appointment for admission - whole body system examination - general anesthesia surgery - postoperative observation - discharge on the next day.

Warm reminder: A short tongue-tie does not play a decisive role in whether a child can speak. However, it may affect the retroflex sounds and may have a certain impact on the clarity of individual words in Mandarin or English. If a child's tongue tie is so short that it significantly restricts tongue mobility (rolling/protrusion), surgical repair may be recommended. It is usually recommended that the optimal age for surgery is before 3-5 years old, when children begin the initial stage of learning language.