Oral Function for Feeding & Swallowing
Our holistic and family-centered approach to feeding challenges looks at the whole person, the interconnectedness of the body systems, and their influence on oral function for breathing and feeding.
Feeding Concerns
Concerns related to feeding skills can be addressed in infancy, toddlerhood, childhood, and even in adults to help reduce challenges, develop new skills, and support alignment with a trajectory to thrive!
We diagnose and treat difficulties related to oral dysfunction, breastfeeding, bottle feeding, transitions to solid foods or texture variety, and expanding diets of picky eaters.
These services include:
Breastfeeding
Bottle Feeding
Complimentary/Transition to Solids
Tethered Oral Tissues: Prehabilitation/Rehabilitation
Signs and Symptoms of Oral Dysfunction
Infant Function:
Difficulty gaining or maintaining latch
Shallow latch
Limited jaw opening to latch
Popping on/off breast
Chomping/compression
Clicking/smacking noise during feed
Frustrated or fussy at breast
Difficulty with weight gain/growth faltering
Milk loss at lips
Reflux
Head turn preference
Body tension
Long duration feeds
Short and frequent feeds
Sensitive gag reflex
Excessive spit ups
Frequent irritability or colic-like symptoms
Infant Structure:
Upper lip blister
Two-toned lips after feeds
Recessed chin
High, narrow palate
Heart shaped tongue tip
Head shape differences
Uneven ears/eyes
Maternal:
Pain with latch/transfer
Nipple/breast tissue damage (compression/white line, shape change/lipstick shape, soreness, cracking, bleeding, bruising)
Reoccurring clogged ducts or mastitis
Reliance on nipple shield to latch/transfer
Difficulty with milk supply
Limited change in breast fullness after feeds
Oversupply
Concerns about tethered oral tissues (tongue tie, lip ties, cheek ties)?
Signs and Symptoms of Tethered Oral Tissues
Infants:
Heart shaped tongue tip
Shallow latch
Poor weight gain
Reflux
Clicking/smacking noise during feed
Excessive gassiness
Mouth breathing when awake or asleep
Limited tongue movements (not sticking tongue out or reaching up to palate)
Recessed chin
High, narrow palate
Toddlers:
Picky eating trends
Slow eating
Choking/gagging
Messy eating
Difficulty transitioning to solids
Sensitivity to food textures
Excessive drooling
Slow acquisition of speech sounds
Forward head posture
Open mouth posture
The participation of an oral function specialist, like our speech-language pathologists and occupational therapists, with specific training in orofacial complex structure and function, as well as a focus on oral phase feeding and swallowing is a paramount piece of the integrated pre and post-frenectomy care team.
Oral function intervention provides support in guiding oral and facial structural development, oral movement patterns, and transition to optimal functional patterns for oral rest posture, breathing, breast/bottle feeding, chewing, swallowing, and speech sound production as related to new range of motion and muscle patterns following a frenectomy.
