The Effect of Frenotomy on the Tongue Length, Motion, and Speech According to Age

Abstract

Background and Objectives Ankyloglossia often results in articulation disorders, which depends on age, articulation ability, and mobility of the tongue. A primary treatment strategy includes surgery and/or speech therapy. This study aimed to evaluate the changes of the tongue length, tongue mobility, and percentage of consonants correct (PCC) after frenotomy. We investigated the optimal surgery timing for ankyloglossia.Subjects and Method A total of 136 patients underwent frenotomy for the tongue tie between January 2016 and December 2019. There were 90 males and 46 females, with the mean age of 5.23, which ranged from 2 to 10 years. The length of the tongue was measured for all patients during the operation preoperatively and postoperatively. The mobility of the tongue and PCC were performed preoperatively and 1 month after surgery by two speech therapists. Patients were divided according to age into three groups: 2-3 years, 4-5 years, and over 6 years old.Results The mean tongue length of all age groups was significantly elongated after surgery (<i>p</i><0.05). After frenotomy, the mobility of tongue, including horizontal protrusion, protrusion with upward pointing, circumlocution, and lateral movement, was improved. Also, PCCs of all age groups were significantly improved after surgery (<i>p</i><0.05).Conclusion Frenotomy can be an effective procedure for children with ankyloglossia in all age groups. After frenotomy, length of the tongue, mobility of the tongue and PCC were significantly improved.