The Prevalence and Significance of Fissured Tongue in Kabul City Among Dental Patients

BACKGROUND: The tongue is known as the mirror of oral and general health. Some diseases may show signs in the tongue. Fissured is approximately an asymptomatic condition characterized by grooves and fissures of varying depth on the dorsal surface of the tongue. Epidemiologically, its prevalence is varied based on different factors, but most of them report 10–20%. METHODS: In the department of oral medicine at Ali-Abad University Hospital of Kabul University of Medical Sciences, a cross-sectional study was conducted among 400 patients. This fissured tongue is first diagnosed based on clinical appearance (fissures) on each side of tongue. Meanwhile, the whole medical and dental histories were taken for the rest of the leading factors. RESULTS: Out of 400 patients (124 males and 276 females) seen and checked, which 142 cases were fissured tongue [45 (31.7%) males and 97 (68.3%) females]. The fissures were found to be least in the >10 – 19-year age group, 23 (16.3%) and it was most prevalent in the 20 −39 age group, 73 (51.8%), followed by 40 −59, 35 (24.8%) and 60< age group, 10 (7.1%). The most prevalent type of pattern of fissures was found to be superficial, multiple and not connected fissures, 46.32% (33.3% males, 32.3% females), followed by superficial, multiple and connected fissures, 25.5% (26.7% males, 25% females), and whereas 6.4% of patients with (single and deep type of fissure) was the lowest prevalent type of fissured tongue. In our study, more than half of patients asymptomatic (51.6% females and 71.1% males), 17.9% complained from tongue dryness, 14.3% soreness, 6.4% halitosis, 1.4% tongue swelling and 2.1% had all the signs. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of fissured tongue was 35.5%. A significant difference between genders was reported with female predominance in all cases observed. The most prevalent age groups were 20–29 and 30–39 in both gender groups. Superficial, multiple, and not connected fissures 46.32% were the most common type of fissure.