A pediatrician, lactation consultant, or speech therapist says the words “tongue tie,” and suddenly you are searching for a tongue tie dentist with a dozen new questions. Most of what you will find online is written only about babies, even though older kids and adults have tongue ties too. Here is what a frenectomy involves, why our Denville office uses a CO2 laser instead of scissors, and what healing really looks like.
What Is a Frenectomy, and How Do You Know It’s Needed?
A frenectomy is a short procedure that releases the frenulum, the small band of tissue that tethers the tongue to the floor of the mouth. When that band is too tight or too short, the condition is called a tongue tie, and it can limit how freely the tongue moves. The release itself typically takes only minutes.
Tongue tie symptoms look different at different ages. In infants, the first flag is often trouble latching or long, frustrating feedings. In older children, a speech therapist may notice that certain sounds are hard to form, and some kids struggle to lick their lips or clear food while chewing. Adults sometimes learn they have a tie after years of jaw tension or trouble sweeping food from their teeth.
None of these signs proves a tongue tie on its own. Evaluation starts with the professionals who know your child, such as your pediatrician, lactation consultant, or speech therapist. A dental exam then confirms whether the frenulum is actually restricting movement before anyone talks about treatment.
Why a CO2 Laser Frenectomy Instead of Scissors?
Frenectomies were traditionally done with scissors or a scalpel. At our Laser Tongue Tie Center, we use the LightScalpel CO2 laser instead. The laser releases the tissue with a focused beam of light, which gives the dentist precise control over exactly how much tissue is released and where.
The practical differences matter to parents. A CO2 laser typically causes minimal bleeding because it seals small blood vessels as it works, and many releases are finished without stitches. Appointments are usually brief, with much of the visit spent on explanation rather than the release itself.
Comfort options are discussed before anything happens. Numbing choices are explained up front, and for a child who is anxious, or an adult who has put this off for years, sedation dentistry is available at our office when it is appropriate. Every patient is different, so we walk through what to expect before anyone reclines in the chair.
Healing, Aftercare, and Whether a Tongue Tie Can Reattach
How long does frenectomy healing take? For most patients the site settles within one to two weeks, and normal eating usually resumes much sooner. The mouth heals quickly, which is mostly good news, with one catch.
That catch is reattachment. Because oral tissue heals so fast, a released frenulum can heal back together if the site closes too tightly. This is why aftercare matters as much as the procedure itself. You will get a short set of gentle stretching exercises to do at home for a few weeks, and following that schedule is the most useful thing you can do to protect the result. If feeding therapy or speech therapy is part of your child’s care, we coordinate timing with those providers.
One more thing most tongue tie pages skip: this is not an infants-only procedure. A frenectomy can be done from infancy through adulthood, so a five-year-old, a teenager, and a parent can all be evaluated at the same family practice.
Your Denville Dental Team for Laser Tongue Tie Treatment
Aesthetic Family Dentistry is a family dental practice in Denville, NJ with a dedicated Laser Tongue Tie Center. Dr. Fine, Dr. Kwiatkowski, and Dr. Steiner see infants, children, and adults from Denville, Rockaway, Parsippany, Mountain Lakes, and across Morris County. We are not a pediatric-specialty office. We are a family practice that welcomes children, which means the sibling who needs a checkup and the parent who has wondered about their own tie can be seen in the same place.
Our holistic approach carries into this service too. We recommend a release only after an evaluation supports it, we explain the why before the how, and we leave diagnosis questions with your medical and therapy providers, where they belong. If you are comparing providers for routine care as well, our guides to choosing a kids’ dentist in Denville and to dental sealants for kids cover what to look for.
If a tongue tie has come up at a pediatrician visit, a feeding consult, or a speech evaluation, an in-person evaluation is the natural next step. Call 973-627-3617 or visit aestheticfamilydentistry.com to request your appointment.
