ClinicalTrials.gg
RecruitingNCT06830148Updated Feb 17, 2025

Post-Procedural Manual Manipulation for Infant Ankyloglossia

An interventional study of Post-frenotomy manual manipulation in Ankyloglossia and Breastfeeding Support, sponsored by Georgetown University. Recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged Up to 90 Days. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2025-02-17.

Sponsored by Georgetown University · Not applicable, Interventional, and Supportive care

From the registry’s dates

  • Primary completion was expected by Oct 2025, 1 year 1 month ago, but the record still lists the study as recruiting.
  • Registered 3 months after the study started (first participant enrolled Oct 2024, registered Feb 2025).
  • Started Oct 2024; still recruiting 2 years later.
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
110
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
Up to 90 Days
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The goal of this randomized control trial is to determine the impact of post-frenotomy manual manipulation on revision rates and breastfeeding outcomes. We hypothesize that post-frenotomy manipulation will reduce the rate of sublingual frenulum regrowth, and subsequently frenotomy revision rates, thereby improving breastfeeding performance.

Infants with ankyloglossia undergoing frenotomy will be randomized into two groups: the intervention group (post-frenotomy manipulation) and the control group (no intervention). Parents in the intervention group will be instructed to perform tongue stretching and suck "re-training" exercises four times daily for 2-3 weeks, beginning 24 hours post-procedure. To monitor adherence and assess any complications, investigators will conduct a follow-up phone call one week after the procedure. Parents in the control group will not be instructed to perform any post-procedural manipulation. All participants will have a mandatory in-person follow-up 2-3 weeks postoperatively, during which breastfeeding outcomes and the need for frenotomy revision will be evaluated.

02

Conditions studied

  • Ankyloglossia
  • Breastfeeding Support

Keywords

  • tongue tie
  • breastfeeding
  • exercises
  • infant
  • pediatric otolaryngology
  • frenotomy
03

In context

Ankyloglossia

32 studies on the registry are indexed under Ankyloglossia; 8 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 110 is close to the median of 105 across 22 interventional studies indexed under Ankyloglossia.

Browse Ankyloglossia studies →

Lead sponsor

Georgetown University is the lead sponsor of 292 studies on the registry; 40 are open to participants now.

Of its 28 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 20 (71%) have results posted.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

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Who can participate

Ages eligible
Up to 90 Days
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • infants less than 90 days old with ankyloglossia who undergo outpatient frenotomy using cold-steel scissors and will be exclusively or partially breastfed.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • infants older than 90 days, those who will be exclusively bottle fed, infants who undergo concomitant lip tie release, those who undergo laser frenotomy, and infants who have previously undergone a frenotomy.
  • infants with a gestational age of less than 36 weeks, those in the NICU or post-partum unit, infants who didn't receive the vitamin K injection, and those with congenital anomalies or medical conditions affecting breastfeeding
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Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Supportive care
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Single (Investigator)
Enrollment
110 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Exercise Group

    In the treatment group, parents will be instructed to perform postprocedural manipulation after the frenotomy.

    Other: Post-frenotomy manual manipulation

  • No intervention
    Control Group

    In the control group, parents will not receive any instructions to perform "suck re-training" exercises or stretching following the procedure.

Interventions

  • OtherPost-frenotomy manual manipulation

    Parents assigned to the treatment group will be instructed to perform post-frenotomy stretches and exercises four times daily, after every other feed, until the time of their postoperative visit 2-3 weeks later.

    Also known as: Post-procedural exercises

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What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Proportion of infants who are recommended to undergo repeat frenotomy

    Recommendations for frenotomy revision will be made by the principal investigator during the post-operative visit, which occurs 2-3 weeks following the procedure. This will include a physical examination to assess post-operative healing, along with an evaluation of the mother's breastfeeding outcomes.

    Time frame: From enrollment to the 2-3 week postoperative visit

  2. Improvement in breastfeeding performance following post-procedural manual manipulation

    Pre- and post-operative maternal breastfeeding performance will be assessed using the LATCH score, a validated questionnaire that evaluates breastfeeding effectiveness. The pre-operative score will be administered during the initial consultation, while the post-operative score will be taken at the follow-up visit, 2-3 weeks after the procedure. The difference in scores will be analyzed to determine if there is an improvement in maternal breastfeeding outcomes.

    Time frame: From enrollment to the 2-3 week postoperative visit

Secondary outcomes

  1. Compliance with post-frenotomy stretching and exercises

    Parents assigned to the treatment group will receive a phone call one week postoperatively to assess their adherence to the treatment plan.

    Time frame: From enrollment to the 1 week postoperative phone call

07

Study locations

1 of 1 sites recruiting
  • MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
    Washington, District of Columbia 20007, United States
    Recruiting
08

References and documents

Publications

  • LeFort Y, Evans A, Livingstone V, Douglas P, Dahlquist N, Donnelly B, Leeper K, Harley E, Lappin S. Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine Position Statement on Ankyloglossia in Breastfeeding Dyads. Breastfeed Med. 2021 Apr;16(4):278-281. doi: 10.1089/bfm.2021.29179.ylf. No abstract available. PubMed 33852342 ↗
  • Messner AH, Walsh J, Rosenfeld RM, Schwartz SR, Ishman SL, Baldassari C, Brietzke SE, Darrow DH, Goldstein N, Levi J, Meyer AK, Parikh S, Simons JP, Wohl DL, Lambie E, Satterfield L. Clinical Consensus Statement: Ankyloglossia in Children. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2020 May;162(5):597-611. doi: 10.1177/0194599820915457. Epub 2020 Apr 14. PubMed 32283998 ↗

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

09

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reached

Started Oct 2024 (actual). Primary completion is estimated for Oct 2025, 12 months after the start.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Feb 11, 2025
First posted
Feb 17, 2025
StartActual
Oct 15, 2024
Primary completionEst.
Oct 2025
CompletionEst.
Nov 2025
Last update
Feb 17, 2025
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Feb 17, 2025, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT06830148
Responsible party
Earl H. Harley, Jr., MD (Chief of Pediatric Otolaryngology and Professor of Otolaryngology and Pediatrics, Georgetown University) — Principal investigator
First posted
Feb 17, 2025
Start date
Oct 15, 2024
Primary completion
Oct 2025 (estimated)
Completion
Nov 2025 (estimated)
Last update
Feb 17, 2025

Study contacts

Emily A Clementi, BA
Contact
eac166@georgetown.edu
(202) 444-8186
Earl H Harley, MD
principal investigator · MedStar Georgetown University Hospital

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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