Atrophic tongue associated with Candida

Abstract

Atrophic tongue associated with pain at eating, even though it is mild atrophic change, has a high probability of being a candida-induced lesion. Long disease duration and no benefit by topical steroids are suggestive and diagnostic factors of this disease.

Diagnosis of Lingual Atrophic Conditions: Associations with Local and Systemic Factors. A Descriptive Review

“…When the balance of the niches is altered, it is often possible to observe a pathological colonization due to a specific, and often single, microbial strain accompanied by clinical manifestations. Atrophic condition of the tongue has been described in association with candidiasis, colonization of Helicobacter pylori and as consequence of Treponema pallidum infection [2, 12, 79-81]. …”

“…Candida infection promotes different clinical manifestations on the tongue surface, both acute and chronic. Among them, chronic erythematous candidiasis determines an atrophic lesion defined as median rhomboid glossitis [5, 70], while an acute erythematous candidiasis can promote an a specific AG [79]. …”

“…Candida infections, in particular the development of a median rhomboid glossitis, are strongly associated with diabetes mellitus, with an incidence up to 30% of patients [3, 70, 79]. …”

“…These regions of atrophy spontaneously resolve and migrate, giving the tongue a variegated appearance [2] .” The diagnosis of this condition is easy, because of the tendency of the lesions to change and “move” throughout the day. Two repeat visits in 12-24 hours and a microbiological examination to rule out a Candida infection, will help in identifying with sufficient certainty the disease without the need for further tests [12, 79, 123]. It is often impossible to alleviate patients’ burning sensations.…”

Cheilitis as a variation of Candida‐associated lesions

“…For mycological examination, the samples were collected with scratch on the lip lesion, and then incubated on Sabouraud's agar medium at 35°C for 3 days. The direct cytologic examination using a quick staining system, the methods have been described elsewhere (Terai and Shimahara, 2005), was performed with the same samples in five of nine patients.…”