Scrotal Tongue

This is a condition that involves grooves developing in the tongue, looking that way because it’s wrinkled. It also is called furrowed tongue, lingua fissurata, lingua plicata, or even lingua scrotal, or grooved tongue. The tongue can have many grooves or a single groove with one branching off from it.  It affects anywhere from 2-5% of the population, the rates varying, and it’s about 21% worldwide. People are usually born with the condition, but they may not notice it immediately, but it does get more noticeable as you get older. Sometimes, it happens due to poor nutrition, but it can happen with facial nerve palsy or face swelling, benign migratory glossitis, which is where you’ve got patches of smooth or bald tongue around rougher areas such as taste buds. People with Down syndrome tend to have this too.

it’s usually a harmless condition with no symptoms, but if the grooves are deep enough, you may feel a burning feeling when you’ve got acidic or burning foods. it’s rare though that the grooves are deep enough, and they nay harbor bits of food and bacteria, which can lead to infections or fungal infections, along with bad breath.

This is a very rare condition, so you may not need to know about this, but it is worth learning about.

Typically, people don’t’ even know that they have scrotal tongue until the dentist lets them know. They can diagnose this by looking at the tongue, which is what’s pretty simple. Typically, it can last a lifetime, and there is no way to prevent this. For the most part, it’s more of a genetic condition than anything, and if it isn’t bothering you, it probably isn’t’ a problem. If you’re brushing your tongue enough, this shouldn’t be a problem, so you should be fine.

This also doesn’t have any treatment either, unfortunately, so if there is any chance that you feel a burning sensation when you eat, you should avoid the foods that are bothering you.  This should also include cleaning both the tongue and the toothbrush with a tongue scraper too. Tongue scrapers are available in drugstores as well, so if you’re looking for that, you can definitely get that.

Now, should you call a professional? Only if it becomes too uncomfortable. There really isn’t’ any way to truly prevent this, and it usually is a condition that is lifelong, but it itself doesn’t’ cause a lot of problems, nor too much discomfort.

However, if you do notice that there is a chance that there is something going on, or bothering you related to this, you should see your dentist immediately to get the help that you need, so that you can be in a healthy, happy mindset, and in a body that isn’t in pain.

It shouldn’t cause trouble for the most part, but if you do get curious about how this can affect you, you can always talk to your doctor about it and get the assistance necessary too.