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Dr. Melissa Jurado botched my frenectomy, causing months of recurring, painful ranulas. I had
TL;DR: Dr. Melissa Jurado botched my frenectomy, causing months of recurring, painful ranulas. I had to undergo a 5 figure surgery under general anesthesia to fix the damage she caused, including the removal of my entire left sublingual gland.
In July 2024, I expressed interest in a tongue-tie release (frenectomy) during a routine cleaning with my trusted dentist of 15 years. She referred me out, saying she didn’t perform it herself. After getting a few quotes, Dr. Melissa Jurado’s office had the most affordable option, so I moved forward with her.
On August 5, 2024, she performed the procedure using a laser—something I later learned should almost always be done with a scalpel for precision and to avoid damaging nearby structures. Although other doctors I consulted used scalpels, Dr. Jurado persuaded me to go with the laser, emphasizing its efficiency and the benefit of cauterization, even though this approach goes against standard practice for this type of procedure. Four medical professionals (a general dentist, two oral surgeons, and an ENT) later confirmed that the laser likely caused more trauma and was a poor choice for the anatomy involved.
Within two weeks of the procedure, I developed painful swelling under my tongue. I soon discovered this was a ranula: a pocket of saliva that forms when a salivary duct is damaged or blocked. I had never experienced this before the frenectomy, but when I called Dr. Jurado, she insisted it wasn’t related and suggested I must have had a “preexisting condition.” This was false and dismissive.
It was ultimately confirmed by four different specialists that Dr. Jurado lasered through a part of my salivary gland, and scar tissue blocked the duct’s opening. This trapped saliva, causing a recurring cycle of pain, swelling, and spontaneous rupture in my mouth—for eight months. Half the time, I couldn’t even eat. It was humiliating and incredibly painful.
I was eventually referred to a top surgeon at Penn Medicine. In April 2025, I underwent surgery under general anesthesia to correct the damage. Due to the extent of scarring and duct trauma, they had to remove my entire left sublingual gland to stop the ranulas from reforming.
Initially, the plan was to simply take out the portion of the sublingual gland adjacent to this, but as we elevated, it became evident that it would be very difficult to not remove the entire sublingual gland without running a significant risk of recurrent ranula and so the lingual nerve was found distally and then followed proximally as was the duct and the sublingual gland was removed from these structures preserving the both with bipolar used as hemostasis. The wound was irrigated. The entire sublingual gland was removed and sent to pathology.
Dr. Jurado misrepresented her experience, used the wrong technique, lied about the cause of my symptoms, and left me to suffer through the consequences of her negligence. If I hadn’t gotten a second opinion, I’d still be living with this nightmare.
Date of experience: 05 August, 2024
Date of experience: 05 August, 2024
