What to Expect
Our goal is to make your experience at our office as relaxing and comfortable as possible. In order to do so, we find it is helpful to go over what your child's visit will entail so there are no surprises along the way.
PAPERWORK
We ask all patients to fill out a new patient form prior to schedule an appointment. You can click here to go directly to the new patient paperwork. We are unable to schedule an appointment or hold an appointment slot without paperwork on file.
If you have any trouble filling out a form online, please give us a call at 781-431-9999 or send an email to office@ngdentalcenter.com.
PHONE CALL
After we receive your paperwork, we will reach out to you within 1 business day to schedule an appointment. In order to reserve an appointment time, we will ask you to put a credit card on file. We do not charge your card unless you cancel with less than 48 hours notice, in which case there is a $150 cancellation fee.
We always recommend that you call your medical (and/or dental) insurance prior to your visit so you will know in advance if treatment will be covered. Unfortunately, we are unable to call on our patients' behalf, and every insurance company is different. Even different policies within the same insurance network can vary widely as to what is cover and what isn't. So the best way to be prepared for what treatment may cost out of pocket is to call your insurance company directly (be sure to let them know Dr. Aaronson is an out-of-network provider.)
EXAMINATION
Once you arrive and are checked in, an assistant will bring you and your child to Dr. Aaronson's consultation room. Dr. Aaronson will then come in and chat with you for a bit about your child's symptoms, any issues you are having with feeding, and she will review your child's medical history. Certain things like traumatic births, long labors, a history of chiropractic treatment, etc. may be important factors to know in order to properly diagnose your child.
She will spend about 20 minutes discussing tongue and lip ties and how they can impact function. It is important for parents to understand what ties are so that they can be fully aware of how their child's condition might be causing issues that they may not have linked to a tongue tie. This allows for parents to make informed decisions on their child's treatment. There is no wrong choice for treatment, as long as it is an informed one.
Dr. Aaronson will then examine your child. If you are seeing a lactation consultant, they are the best diagnostic tool for latch and nursing difficulties - Dr. Aaronson's assessment is an adjunct to the IBCLC's evaluation.
In order to properly diagnose a tie, the lip and tongue must be maneuvered in a way that can clearly expose any restrictions. This involves a lap-to-lap exam, in which a parent is seated across from the doctor, and the baby's head is placed in Dr. Aaronson's lap. Dr. Aaronson will then lift the baby's lip, move the cheeks, and lift under the tongue to look for any restrictions. It is important to note that the presence of a frenum (a band of tissue) connecting the lip or tongue to the rest of the mouth does not necessarily mean treatment is needed. Dr. Aaronson evaluates whether the frenum is inhibiting the baby's mouth from going through the necessary movements to properly latch and suck.
INFORMED CONSENT
If Dr. Aaronson determines that your child has a tie (or multiple ties), then treatment options are discussed. In most cases, treatment would involve a laser frenectomy, which involves a laser shining a light on the frenum until the restriction is removed. Risks and benefits are then reviewed, and parents have an opportunity to ask any questions. There is never any pressure to decide on the spot - parents are welcome to go home and think about their options before making the decision whether or not to treat.
If you decide to proceed with treatment that day, you are asked to sign the informed consent and then pay for the treatments. The charge is $799 per site (lip, tongue, cheek) for infants and children up to age 3. We ask that you pay at the time of service because insurance companies will send reimbursement checks directly to your home address, as we are out of network and cannot receive medical insurance payments.
Please note: Children over age 1 must be working with a speech pathologist, feeding therapist, myofunctional therapist, and/or bodyworker both prior to and after the procedure to ensure a successful outcome.
TREATMENT
Your child is brought back to the treatment room by an assistant. We ask that parents stay in the waiting room during the treatment, which usually takes less than 5 minutes. The reason we ask parents to not be in the room is because Dr. Aaronson needs to focus 100% of her attention on your child, and having worried or anxious parents in the corner of the room is distracting. If you have an issue not being in the room during treatment, please discuss this with the doctor. Exceptions can be made in certain circumstances, but please be prepared to not be allowed in the room during treatment.
Once the baby is comfortably swaddled, we place protective glasses over your baby's eyes to prevent any damage from the laser. Pre-op photos will be taken for documentation/ insurance purposes. A numbing gel is applied to the area(s) being treated, if desired. The assistant holds your baby steady while Dr. Aaronson uses the laser to quickly release the frenum(s). Although the actual laser treatment takes about 5-10 seconds, Dr. Aaronson needs to access the mouth and get a good look at the lip and/or tongue prior to treatment. This is usually the part where babies scream and cry, because they simply don't like fingers in their mouths! We reassure the parents that any cries they might hear from the treatment room does not mean their baby is in pain. A post-op photo is then taken.
POST-OP
As soon as the release is done, your baby is picked up and comforted while the assistant goes to the waiting room to retrieve the parents. The parents are brought back to the room and you are free to feed your baby (breast or bottle) if you would like. Most parents prefer to feed immediately after treatment, both to comfort their child and also to see if the release has helped improve a painful latch. Many mothers notice an immediate difference, but this is not always the case.
Dr. Aaronson will review the stretching techniques and post-op care at this time. She will discuss pain management, what to expect with healing and pain, and any concerns you should be aware of that would warrant a phone call. She will then give you her personal cell phone number and encourage you to call/text her with any questions or concerns that may arise.
You are welcome to stay in our office and feed your child for as long as you need. We offer a Boppy or My Breast Friend nursing pillow to those who need it.
FOLLOW UP CARE
We recommend following up with your feeding specialist (IBCLC, SLP, etc.) within 3 weeks to ensure that function is improving. If there is any concern about healing, please reach out to use to schedule a follow-up with Dr. Heidi so that she can make sure the site is healing properly and to answer any questions you may have regarding your child's healing. You are welcome to return as often as needed - there is no charge for follow-up visits for the first three months after treatment. We do encourage parents to see their IBCLC first and follow up with our office if the IBCLC is concerned about the wound healing properly.
