frenectomy/fibromas

[Katambra]

Anyone know anything about this? My son has a very low lying upper frenum (between his 2 front teeth) and it is causing a huge gap in his teeth. They don't come straight down and the side teeth are now trying to come in on top of the front teeth because they are so far over. It is causing him a lot of pain. I know he needs to have the frenum cut, but who does it? The dentist, or the ped? Has anyone's little one had this done? My middle son had the same problem, but he fell and sliced it himself so we never had to deal with it. Aizec is 8 months old. Any info at all would be very helpful. Thanks!
Kat

[javamama]

Both of my children have this. I went to a pediatric dentist to find out what to expect. He said not to let anyone touch it until they are at least 8 and the permanent teeth have come in. Apparently, if it is cut too early, the scar can make the situation worse. DD is 5 and her baby teeth came in okay, there is a huge gap, though. It sounds like your son's may be more severe with the overlap?? On a side note, the dentist said it is possible that when the permanent teeth come in, there is extra room and they may come in straighter. One can only hope...... I'll be curious to see what other info is posted here.....
Heather

[AMum]

I had my frenum cut when I was 11. It was very painful for about a week. I had been seeing a dentist who put braces on my teeth & then had me use retainers. Then we switched dentists & the new guy said that nothing would permanently straighten my teeth until the frenum was cut. He took off the braces & did the surgery. My mother then refused to pay for more braces. Ugh! Amazingly enough my top teeth have straightened out a lot on thier own. The bottom ones are a mess though. It looks like my ds has the same problem. I think it would be best to get it cut before he gets permanent teeth.

Katambra ~ it sounds like your son could benefit from a consultation with an oral surgeon, but you could start by asking your dentist.

Let us know what they recommend & what they decide

Good luck,

[willibug]

Tongue-tied 3yo--What To Expect?

I took 3yo dd to the dentist yesterday, and he noticed that she is tongue-tied. We had never noticed this, although it makes sense to me now. She has trouble pronouncing he L's, and the 2 bottom center front teeth have a small gap, which he said results from the condition.

Anyway, they are going to call me with a referral to an oral surgeon. I had the same thing done when I was about the same age as dd, and I remember it. It was done by our pediatrician. The dentist, however, said that nowadays it is the job of an oral surgeon. I'd like to know if anyone else has experience of this. I did a search and found that someone mentioned having an 8mo with a tongue tie operated on under general anesthesia. But I wonder about a 3yo.

Anyone?

[lilyka]

Speech therapy and all the other stuff they use to cope with tounge tie seems so silly to me. Why not clip it. I had dd done at 2 months. The procedure took exactly 10 seconds and produce one drop of blood.,And that was on a wiggly uncooperative new born. She was more ticked off at being held down than "operated" on. No anatetic, no aniseptic no fuss. She lactched on perfectly instantly after she had it done and went to sleep with a full belly. After waking up spent the rest of her day licking her lips and sticking out her tounge. She was thrilled with her new toy. Still gets quite a kick out of licking unsuspecting people. The reason it takes a surgen is malpactice insurance. We went to an ENT. Office visit and she spent more time parading my baby around the office and loving on her than she did clipping her tounge. I can imagine it feels a bit like biting your tounge. It heels so fast the main concern is that it will heel back together. Give your son a popsicle to lick and help him learn to lick it. The cold will numb any pain and the fun of the treat will dry any tears. Why make your child struggle to overcome something that can easily be solved with almost no risk what so ever. Have it checked after a few weeks to make sure it hasn't grown back together.