Hallie Bulkin (YouTube) argues that decisions about oral tissue release should be guided by functional impact — specifically whether tethered oral tissue is affecting sleep, breathing/airway, feeding, or speech — rather than appearance alone. She cites the AAO-HNS consensus (via SAGE Journals) to support diagnosis and management based on function.
And it really ties into whether or not the release is necessary. Because it comes down to one thing. Function. Is it impacting sleep like that tethered oral tissue? Is there tight tissue present? And is it impacting sleep, breathing, airway, feeding, speech, et cetera? Right. Because function drives everything. And the AAO HNS consensus per SAGE Journals emphasizes the same thing. Diagnosis and management is based on functional impact, not appearance alone.
What I Was Missing in Feeding Therapy: ARFID, Airway, and Myo with Samy Hernandez
