Dr. Stephen Wright and his team are transforming the lives of infants, children, and adults by helping them eat, speak, and sleep better. Combining expert surgical skill and the most advanced laser technology in a friendly patient setting, Chattanooga Tongue Tie Center is here to help when you need it the most.
Schedule a ConsultBefore scheduling a consult, please take a look at the symptoms to see if they match with your or your child's symptoms.
Tongue ties are a small band of tissue that connects the tongue too tightly to the floor of the mouth. Lip ties occur most commonly on the upper lip and have to do with a band of tissue that tethers the lip.
Nursing issues are by far the most common problem caused by tongue ties. In infants, tongue ties can hinder the tongue from reaching their palate which is necessary for a proper latch while breast feeding. If a child’s tongue is not able to function properly and causes issues with swallowing, nursing may become very frustrating and/or painful for both child and mother.
If left unattended for a longer amount of time, oral restrictions can start to affect other aspects including sleep and speech.
A consultation will indicate whether your child will benefit from a tongue or lip tie treatment. We don’t perform unnecessary procedures. We take the time to talk it through together and explain why we feel your child does or does not need a procedure.
Using a state-of-the-art Light Scalpel CO2 dental laser, we easily release ties in a 10-15 second procedure, usually with minimal to no bleeding. Babies are usually gone from mom no longer than 7-10 minutes. You’ll be surprised how quick and easy it is.
Babies are able to go to mom immediately following the procedure and nurse if needed. The recovery only takes minutes and children can resume normal functioning almost immediately.
After graduating from dental school in 2013, Dr. Wright served as a missionary dentist for Samaritan’s Purse in Curahuasi, Peru. During his time there, he gained extensive experience in tongue-tie revisions, acquiring more knowledge in a few months than he had throughout his previous four years of dental education and two years of pediatric dental residency.
At Hospital Diospi Suyana, Dr. Wright collaborated closely with missionary doctors, where he first learned to perform revisions using traditional clamp and scissors/scalpel techniques. Upon returning to the United States, he joined a progressive pediatric dental practice in Hilton Head, SC, renowned for pioneering diode laser technology in tongue-tie procedures. It was in this advanced setting that Dr. Wright refined his skills and mastered the latest techniques.
Inspired by his experiences, and his desire to raise his kids where he grew up he and his family returned to Chattanooga, where he established the Chattanooga Tongue Tie Center. His unique background and extensive expertise have made him one of the most trusted providers in the Greater Chattanooga area.
