Determinants of geographic tongue in patients with asthma

ABSTRACT

The study was conducted on 72 patients with asthma who attended the Asthma follow-up Clinic in King Abdel-Aziz University Hospital during one month. Diagnosis of bronchial asthma was confirmed through medical history, nature of the episodic attacks, complaints during attacks, chest X-ray, and lung function measurements before and after salbutamol inhalation. Total IgE level was determined for all patients. Detailed personal and clinical information were obtained on each patient. The presence of geographic tongue was checked through intraoral examination. The study showed high prevalence of geographic tongue [18%] among the asthmatic patients. Geographic tongue lesions were encountered more frequently among young patients, with no sex predilection. There was no significant tendency of occurrence of geographic tongue in patients with raised IgE levels, nor in those with known allergic disorders. Of interest, was the finding that geographic tongue was exclusively detected in patients with mild and episodic asthma, while no tongue lesions were detected in those with severe and chronic asthma