Prevalence of Ankyloglossia among Children Reporting with Speech Pathology to District Early Intervention Centre (DEIC)- An Observational Study.

ABSTRACT

A sound is produced as a result of various movements and positions of the mobile and immobile elements of the articulation system. Tongue being one of the important mobile elements if restricted may lead to difficulty in articulation of one or more sounds. However, the relationship between speech and ankyloglossia is less investigated. So, we conducted a study to evaluate the prevalence of ankyloglossia among children with speech pathology reporting to District Early Intervention Centre (DEIC).METHODSAn observational study was conducted in the Department of Dental Surgery in association with DEIC of a tertiary care hospital for a period of one year. Children reporting for evaluation of speech pathology between 3 and 11 years of age were examined. Children with a history of traumatic injury or any surgical / chemo radiation treatment to oral cavity were excluded from the study.RESULTSAmong the total of 8911 patients who visited DEIC, 380 patients were referred for evaluation of speech difficulty. Among them a total of 304 patients were diagnosed with ankyloglossia. The overall prevalence of ankyloglossia was 3.4 percent and that among patients with speech problem was 80 percent. The prevalence was distributed as 63.5 percent in males and 36.5 percent in females. Type 2 ankyloglossia was highly prevalent (72 percent) than the others.CONCLUSIONSA substantial proportion of children with speech problem had ankyloglossia (80 percent). So, all the children with speech difficulty should be screened for ankyloglossia and correction undertaken. Awareness should be created among the common people about ankyloglossia, and the treatment options available.