A study on fissured tongue among students of a tertiary institution in Nigeria

Abstract

Introduction: Fissured tongue also known as lingua plicata is an asymptomatic condition marked by fissures and grooves of various depths on the posterior surface of the tongue. It has been one of those pathologies predominantly disregarded and misdiagnosed, therefore knowledge will be vital in timely diagnosis and advocating the essential treatment regimen. The aim of this study was to investigate the distribution of fissured tongue and to evaluate any association  with gender , age and medical history. Materials and methods: The study was a crossectional  study carried out among undergraduate students of a tertiary Institution in Delta State, Nigeria. Simple random sampling was adopted for the study and a total of 384 participants within the ages of 17-31years were examined for fissured  tongue. The fissured tongues were classified into Type I-VI and they were termed plication, central longitudinal, diffuse, branching, central transverse and lateral longitudinal. Results: Findings from this study showed that 58.40% had Type II (Central Longitudinal) while 3.90% had Type VI(Lateral longitudinal). Fissured tongue was observed in 62.30% males as compared to 37.70% females. Males within the ages of 22-26years and females between 17-21years of age were most affected. Further findings showed that age, gender and medical history had a significant association with fissured tongue (X²= 141.52, 35.29,13.44; p=0.001,0.001, 0.004). Conclusions: Fissured tongue from this study was asymptomatic among participants.