Tongue-tie assessment and division services
I offer frenulotomy privately to parents of babies with tongue-tie after completing training in Southampton in 2011. I do not need a referral. Please note that I routinely treat babies up to 6 months old. For babies aged between 6-12 months I make a judgement based on the size and temperament of the baby and how many teeth they have.
Due to the high volume of clients I am only offering appointments in clinics. I am not doing home visits.
Tongue-tie is a condition which affects up to 1 in 10 babies and is more common in boys than girls. Most of us have a lingual frenulum (a membrane situated towards the base of the tongue which extends from the under surface of the tongue into the floor of the mouth) so the presence of a visible or palpable lingual frenulum is normal anatomy. However, in some individuals this lingual frenulum may be short, tight and attached close to the tip of the tongue and/or on the gum and cause restrictions in tongue movement and function. These restrictions may then cause feeding difficulties. These restricted lingual frenula are what we call a ‘tongue-tie’.
For more detailed information on tongue-tie see my Parents Guide
Additional information can be found in my book ‘Why Tongue-tie Matters’
Video of a tongue-tie assessment
Tongue-tie Assessment Tools:
Hazelbaker tool for Lingual Frenulum Function
Bristol Tongue Assessment Tool_v3
Frenotomy Decision Tool for Breastfeeding Dyads (Dobrich)
Lingual Frenulum Protocol for Infants (Martinelli)
Video of a tongue-tie division
Consultations
I offer clinic consultations in Burwell (Cambridge), Somersham (Huntingdon)
As an IBCLC (Lactation Consultant) I offer full breastfeeding assessment and support as an integral part of my tongue-tie service. Please read the information on this here.
What to Expect
I offer clinic consultations at:
Burwell (near Newmarket and Cambridge) – The Maltings, High Street, Burwell, CB25 0HB. Free parking on site.
Somersham (Huntingdon) – Harding Physiotherapy, 20 West Newlands, Somersham, PE28 3EB. Free parking outside clinic and on the road.
- Clinic consultation for tongue-tie division (includes assessment and feeding support) £220 for breastfed/combination fed babies, £200 for formula fed babies. Please be aware that there is a charge for the consultation of £100 for formula fed babies and £120 for breastfed/combination fed babies which is still payable even if I do not do a division.
- Clinic follow up consultations £75
Your consultation fee includes free email/phone and online follow up.
- You will be given an appointment for a clinic consultation.
- You should avoid feeding baby for an hour before the appointment so he or she will be interested in feeding during the consultation.
- Bring your red book and a blanket to wrap baby in and if baby is having top ups or is bottle fed bring some expressed milk or if using formula a carton of the ready made formula you usually use.
- I will take a detailed medical history for both mother and baby, birth history and feeding history from you and I may observe baby feeding.
- I will assess tongue function and then discuss my findings with you.
- We will go through strategies, which may be more appropriate than tongue-tie division, or which may be needed alongside division, to improve feeding such as positioning and attachment, boosting milk supply, suck training, etc.
- If tongue-tie division is appropriate I will go through the potential outcomes and risks of the procedure with you so you can make an informed decision on whether to go ahead or not.
- You will be asked to sign a consent form. There is no obligation to go ahead and I am quite happy for parents to go away and spend time researching and thinking more about the procedure if they wish to.
- I will swaddle your baby in a towel or blanket and place them on the couch in the clinic room under a bright lamp or surgical lighting.
- If I have an assistant in clinic then they will hold your baby’s head (unless you prefer to). However, if I am working alone then a parent will need to hold baby’s head.
- Using my index finger to lift the tongue I will visualise the frenulum (tongue-tie) and snip it using a pair of single use, sterile, curved, blunt tipped scissors.
- Once the frenulum has been fully divided to form a diamond shaped wound I will place a piece of gauze under baby’s tongue and pass baby to mum to feed. Babies usually latch on within a minute and bleeding is usually very light and stops quickly once baby is feeding. Most babies tolerate the procedure well with just a short cry before they feed.
- I will observe baby feeding and provide support with this.
- I will also go through some simple, gentle tongue exercises you can do with your baby and explain to you what to expect in terms of healing and recovery.
- A feeding plan will be agreed with you to manage any ongoing feeding issues and get feeding back on track.
- You will stay with me until any bleeding has settled.