Tongue Thrusting and Its Treatment

As an orthodontist, Dr. Natalia Valderrama Dougherty maintains a particular interest in the interdisciplinary correction of oral habits. Dr. Natalia Valderrama-Dougherty upholds a commitment to collaboration with speech therapists, ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialists, and other professionals whose expertise can contribute to long-term oral-health solutions. Having 25 years of experience in the dental field and 6 years of experience as a registered nurse in the medical-hospital field, Dr. Valderrama Dougherty puts a lot of emphasis in the interdisciplinary approach to patient treatment. "Developing an appropriate treatment plan that is tailored to the patient true needs, requires usually more than one specialty to be completely involved to really treat the root cause of the problem", she states. "Without identifying and diagnosing properly a problem and its cause, one can never treat to the full extend a malocclusion or a dental deformity, more than one person needs to be involved and that includes the patient himself." Dr. Valderrama Dougherty adds.

As a baby learns how to use his or her mouth, the tongue often comes too far forward and extends between the upper and lower teeth as the child speaks or swallows. Most children grow out of this habit. When it remains into the elementary school years, however, it can begin to affect not only the child's speech development but also the positioning of the teeth in the mouth.

In some cases, tongue thrust is a result of an ENT issue that, when treated, will correct the tongue thrust itself. If not, the child may need to see a speech therapist and engage in a particular series of exercises, including pronunciation challenges that require the child to place the tongue at the roof of the mouth.

Families may also benefit from a visit to a dentist or orthodontist, who can advise on the impact of tongue thrust on oral development. Such professionals can also provide suggestions for corrective devices or other services that can reduce the impact of tongue thrusting on the child's teeth and bite. In most cases, a lingual frenectomy is all the patient needs to release the tongue anatomically and to be able to position the tongue correctly. If the problem is diagnosed early and the frenectomy is done at an early age, the speech problem will never develop and in consequence the dental malocclusion will never happen.

Call Dr. Natalia Valderrama Dougherty at Valderrama Orthodontics in Suntree in Melbourne for a complementary consultation to see if your child's tongue is tight and if speech pathology therapy is the answer to your child problem. Do not wait until is too late.