Benign migratory glossitis. Etiology. Clinical findings. Diagnosis. Treatment

Abstract

Introduction: Geographic tongue or benign migratory glossitis is a condition that can be observed at any time in life. The occurrence appears to be spontaneous and only occasionally associated with a physical, chemical, or environmental exposure. Since the manifestations are often subtle and without symptoms, an exact prevalence remains unknown, but could involve as many as 10% of a population. Once geographic tongue occurs, it usually remains in a chronic or cyclic form indefinitely. Purpose and objectives: Secundary glossitis are a topic of discussion in many literature,but in many cases the information is not so wide, therefore, we aimed to study more details about geographic tongue, based on bibliography and own clinical cases. Materials and methods: In the current study we examined 55 patients . The clinical examination and anamnesis was completed with photostatic method. Results: We examined 55 patients, of which 5 were diagnosed with benign migratory glossitis , which is 8%, of which 2 are children, two women and one man. Changes were detected accidentally on clinical examination of the oral. Although geographic tongue is one of the most prevalent oral mucosal lesions, there are virtually nostudies available with the objective to elucidate the etiology behind this disorder. In our cases heredity has been reported, suggesting the involvement of genetic factors in the etiology, and also in one case the etiology is supposed to be related with gastrointestinal diseases. There are classic clinical findings of depapillation of the filiform papillae on the dorsum of the tongue, causing erythematous configurations that can be variable in size, shapes, and number. These areas are bordered by a slight increase in the surrounding filiform papillae, forming a white-appearing, narrow, peripheral margin. We did the differential diagnosis with others Surface tongue lesions that are generally asymptomatic include candidiasis, lichen planus, and lupus erythematosus. In addition, the clinician must be aware of the possibility of premalignant dysplasia. No treatment is required in asymptomatic cases, but in other cases is indicated. Symptoms are treated empirically. Conclusion: It is important for patients to be insuered that although this is a chronic or cyclic condition, benign migratoiy glossitis does not represents a neoplastic, infectious or contagious disease.