My Baby Was Diagnosed With Oral Ties—Now What?

If your baby has recently been diagnosed with an oral tie, you've come to the right place. You may be wondering what to do next. Maybe feeding feels painful, your baby struggles to stay latched, or you've received conflicting advice from different providers.

The good news is that occupational therapy can play an important role in helping babies with oral ties and feeding difficulties.

What Are Oral Ties?

Oral ties occur when the tissue connecting the tongue, lips, or cheeks restricts movement. While some babies with oral ties feed without difficulty, others may experience challenges that impact breastfeeding, bottle feeding, or later feeding skills.

Common signs may include:

• Difficulty maintaining a deep latch

• Clicking while feeding

• Milk leaking from the mouth

• Frequent unlatching

• Gassiness or fussiness during feeds

• Poor milk transfer or weight gain

• Pain during breastfeeding

  
  

How Can Occupational Therapy Help?

Feeding is about much more than just the mouth. Successful feeding requires coordination between oral motor skills, body positioning, muscle tone, regulation, and the caregiver-baby relationship.

As a pediatric occupational therapist and lactation counselor, I look at the whole picture to understand what may be contributing to feeding challenges.

Therapy may focus on:

• Oral motor skills and coordination

• Body tension and side preferences

• Positioning during feeds

• Suck-swallow-breathe coordination

• Parent education and support

  
  

By addressing these underlying factors, we can help babies feed more efficiently and comfortably.

Does Every Baby Need a Revision?

Not necessarily.

The presence of an oral tie alone does not determine whether a procedure is needed. What's most important is how your baby is functioning.

Many feeding difficulties are multifactorial, meaning factors such as body tension, oral motor coordination, and positioning may also be contributing to the challenge.

A comprehensive feeding evaluation can help determine the best next steps for your baby and family.

Therapy Before and After a Revision

Occupational therapy can be beneficial both before and after a release procedure.

Before a revision, therapy may help improve oral motor skills and address body tension that could be impacting feeding.

After a revision, babies often benefit from support learning how to use their new range of motion effectively during feeding.

Taking Things One Step at a Time

Feeding challenges can feel overwhelming, but you don't have to navigate them alone. With the right support, many babies make meaningful progress and feeding can become a more positive experience for both baby and caregiver.

At Baby Steps OT, we believe in taking things one step at a time. My goal is to help families understand what's happening, feel confident in their decisions, and create a plan that supports both baby and parent along the feeding journey.

Wondering if occupational therapy could help your baby? Contact us to schedule a free consultation and learn how we can support your family's feeding journey.

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