Bridle in newborns

At different times, the problem of a small frenulum in a newborn was treated differently: at first it was cut as necessary immediately in the nursery, and then they began to say that this was not a problem at all. What about this issue at the moment?

Now, when all pediatricians advocate the need for breastfeeding of children, the problem of a short frenulum under the tongue of newborns began to pay special attention, since this greatly depends on the correct organization of the process of breastfeeding. And no matter how terrible it may sound, the only solution to this problem is to prune the frenum of the tongue in newborns. In order to dispel fears and doubts from parents, we will consider the main signs of a short frenum in newborn children and the optimal timing when it is better to prune it.

Signs of a short frenum in newborns

Bridle is called the thin ligament-septum between the tongue and the lower oral cavity, normally reaching the middle of the tongue. If it is attached to the very tip of the tongue or is really too short, which limits its mobility, then it is called short.

You can determine this by the following criteria:

1. The baby can not hold his chest for a long time.
2. Feedings are inactive, long in time.
3. The child does not eat up and as a consequence - a bad gain in weight.
4. Smacking, chewing or biting the nipples during feeding.
5. After feeding - frequent regurgitation and swelling.
6. The mother has pain during feeding, frequent lactostasis , deformity of the shape of the nipples.

A short frenum in newborns can easily be seen by simply looking into the baby's mouth - a bridle attached to the tip of the tongue will split it in the form of a heart.

When to prune a bridle in a newborn?

The simplest operation of pruning the tongue in newborns can be carried out from the first days of life. It is that a short bridle is simply cut through with a sterile scissors. Since up to one year the bridle is not fully equipped with blood vessels and nerve endings, this procedure is almost painless and takes very little time. Immediately after the procedure, the baby should be attached to the breast and sterile mother's milk will wash and protect the wound from any infection.

Not having eliminated in time the problem of a short frenum in infancy, the child in the future can have problems not only with weight, but also with bite, with teeth and with speech.