Surgical treatment of ankyloglossia

Ankyloglossia, although difficult to define and quantify, is present in approximately 4%-5% of the pediatric population. Tongue-tie typically presents with difficulty in breast-feeding because of reduced mobility of the tongue and is implicated in difficulty with speech later in life. The lingual frenulum is typically a structure with low vascularity innervation and amenable to surgical treatment in an outpatient clinic as well as the operating room. Multiple techniques from simple division to multiple-flap frenuloplasties have been developed to treat the disorder and are tolerated well, with near-immediate improvement in breast-feeding quality.