Ankyloglossia and its Importance in Sustained Breastfeeding

Abstract

Ankyloglossia, commonly known as tongue-tie, is reported to affect 7% of infants and can impact ability to breastfeed. A comprehensive review of literature was taken which included an assessment of which diagnostic tools are most accurate in determining ankyloglossia associated with difficult breastfeeding. It was noted that there was not a standardized approachto identifying and treating ankyloglossia in breastfed infants. Based on this review, a multidisciplinary team was established to develop a team for a holistic assessment of breastfeeding efficacy. A protocol was developed for assessment of frenotomy impact on breastfeeding. It included LATCH, Coryllos Scale, and IBFAT as the most useful evaluation tools and developed a prospective assessment in infants with ankyloglossia. This study is in the early data collection phase. The goal of this study is to fill an important gap in the knowledge of the impact of ankyloglossia in sustained breastfeeding.