My 18 month old went through a Labial Fenectomy.

[HoarseStallion]

My 18 month old had a mild case of baby bottle rot, except that he never had a bottle, so it's more like Baby Nipple Rot.  His doctors thought it would be best to put some caps on his 4 affected teeth.

We awoke at 5:30am and drove through hellish snow and dangerously icy conditions to have this operation done.  So already we're not in our right minds.  We were so afraid for our little guy.  So very worried about the procedure.

Long story short, half way through it, we are met with a nurse in the waiting room which told us about his "frenum problem."  He does have a little gap between his two top front teeth.  But then again, so do I.  The nurse told us about how he might have trouble pronouncing Rs.  Or how that gap would always be there.  She also told us that since he's under now, it'd be the best time cause later on it will be more traumatic.

My emotions were all over the place.  Unrested, worried for my baby, I made a choice.  I said, "Okay do it."  

Now, I am regretful.  It seemed like I fell for some fear mongering just so the hospital could bill something more.  My baby, forever changed.  My wife says his smile is different.  I am unsure if it's that or the dental work he had done as it definitely made his teeth more "Chicklet-like."  

Then on top of all I read that for the purpose of the gap, a frenectomy should only be performed AFTER the teeth have been corrected via braces.  If not the resulting scar tissue might prevent the teeth from growing close together.

We were sold a bag of goods by the hospital?

Have I forever changed my son's appearance?

How else might this affect him?

[HoarseStallion]

Alright, cool.  I REALLY REALLY REALLY appreciate your post and insight.

I'm assuming the change in his smile is not because of the frenectomy but because he now has huge "chicklet" teeth.  Poor little guy.  His teeth has doubled in size at least.  

But again, thanks for your post.  Puts my head at ease.  Amazing how much we worry about these little guys.

[mommyofbhp]

Actually there is no need to worry. They were smart to do the frenectomy while the baby was under. The primary problem with a diastema (space between the teeth) is cosmetic, but yes, there can be speech issues as well. As for having a frenectomy after orthodontics, that is only done because it wasn't done when the child was young. You're ahead of the game doing it this way. They did the right thing and so did you. This was smart and I applaud the doctor and you for making the right choice.