Cracks on the tongue

When it comes to tongue diseases, I believe many people think that they are nothing serious and generally choose to ignore them. In particular, some people occasionally find large and small cracks on their tongue when looking in the mirror. Many people do not take it seriously and think that they have symptoms caused by getting angry. In fact, cracks on the tongue are caused by a disease called fissured tongue. So what are the symptoms of fissured tongue?

Many people think that having cracks on the tongue is a normal phenomenon. In fact, experts tell us that fissured tongue is a disease, the main manifestation of which is the appearance of grooves on the tongue and the absence of tongue coating. Below we will give you a detailed introduction to the manifestations and symptoms of cracks on the tongue.

Cracks on the tongue

Some people occasionally find cracks on their tongue when looking in the mirror. Some take it seriously while others do not. Experts say: If there are cracks on the tongue, be careful of fissured tongue. Fissured tongue is a very common disease in life. It is mainly manifested by cracks of varying numbers, depths and shapes on the tongue surface, commonly known as fissured tongue. Fissured tongue: Horizontal cracks appear on the tongue surface, which is seen in Down disease (congenital idiocy) and riboflavin deficiency, the latter of which causes tongue pain. Longitudinal cracks are seen in syphilitic glossitis.

Introduction

About 0.5% of the healthy population has congenital cracks in their tongues, called congenital cleft tongue. Its characteristic is that the cracks are covered with tongue coating and there are no discomfort symptoms. This congenital fissured tongue is different from the fissured tongue of sick people and is an abnormal tongue appearance. The patient's fissured tongue has obvious grooves on the tongue surface, but there is no tongue coating covering the grooves. This tongue pattern is generally caused by deficiency of essence and blood, or depletion of yin fluid, malnutrition of the tongue, and atrophy of the tongue surface. Fissured tongue: A tongue with cracks of varying numbers, depths, and shapes on its surface is called a fissured tongue.

This disease is mostly a symptom of yin deficiency and excessive heat. The main symptoms of fissured tongue are:

(1) Excessive heat damages the yin, often resulting in a red tongue with cracks;

(2) Blood deficiency, often with a pale tongue and cracks.

(3) Spleen deficiency and dampness: The tongue is pale, plump and tender, with teeth marks and cracks on the edges. The treatment is suitable for nourishing yin essence, replenishing qi and producing body fluid; tonifying the spleen and draining dampness; tonifying yin and purging fire; clearing heat and moistening dryness.

In addition, cracked tongue refers to the cracks in the tongue texture, and also refers to the cracks in the tongue coating. When making a diagnosis, one should distinguish based on the dryness or moisture of the coating. If it is cracked due to dryness, it indicates that the body fluids are damaged by heat from an exogenous disease, and the dryness and heat are severe. If the tongue coating is wet and cracked, it is mostly caused by qi deficiency.

Modern research believes that shallow cracks on the tongue are mainly caused by atrophy of the tongue mucosa, which causes the longitudinal or transverse lines of the tongue to show through the surface. Deep cracks on the tongue are more serious atrophic lesions of the tongue, which causes the tongue epithelium to lose its normal structure. Some papillae become flat and fuse, while others atrophy and break to form cracks, and thickened scar contraction can be seen underneath.

The Guide to Tongue Discrimination: The Nature of Tongue Discrimination believes that a normal person’s tongue has no cracks. If there are cracks, it means blood deficiency. The number and depth of the cracks reflect the slightest degree of blood deficiency.

Horizontal cracks on the tongue indicate a deficiency of yin in the body, like borneol lines, which are mostly seen in the elderly with yin deficiency; a red tongue with no coating or with short horizontal and vertical lines indicates yin deficiency and fluid dryness; a tongue with cracks or broken lines like the character "人" or "川" indicates dryness of the stomach and fluid dryness, as well as internal heat. A red tongue with human-shaped patterns indicates that pathogens have just entered the heart, or that cold medicines have been mistakenly used for yin syndrome. A red and cracked tongue with a strong thirst for drinking indicates upper consumption. A thick, greasy and cracked red tongue coating indicates excess heat in the internal organs. A red and cracked tongue coating with no spots indicates yin deficiency and fire inflammation. A crimson, dry and cracked tongue indicates that pathogens have entered the liver or that the yin fluid is severely damaged. If the cracks are not smooth, it indicates insufficient stomach yin and condensation of phlegm and heat. If the tongue is crimson and the edges and tips are broken, and there are bloodstains and pain, it indicates a severe loss of yin fluid and burning heart fire. A yellow tongue with tiger stripes indicates that the tongue is It indicates both Qi and blood are spreading; the tongue is rosy with black lines, which is a symptom of Jueyang cold; if there are herringbone patterns on the back, it indicates kidney Qi overwhelms the heart; if there are attack patterns in the middle, it is mostly due to deficiency of stomach Qi; the pale tongue is covered with hair lines, which is a sign of spleen deficiency and dampness; the tongue is red with several black lines and a slippery coating, which is a symptom of water overtaking fire cold; the tongue has blue lines, which indicates stomach Qi deficiency in typhoid fever and cold accumulation in the palace in miscellaneous diseases; the tongue has cracks and bleeding, the blood is burned and dried, and there is bleeding from the tip of the tongue, which is a sign of excessive evil heat in the heart meridian. Since fissured tongue is associated with many symptoms and is rarely seen in clinical diseases, please refer to the various associated symptoms for details.

Patients with this type of tongue pattern generally have more complicated conditions, and treatment should be based on syndrome differentiation and medication.

After reading the above detailed introduction to the symptoms and manifestations of cracks on the tongue, I believe everyone has a general understanding of it. Cracks on the tongue are a disease. Experts tell us that it is mainly caused by spleen deficiency, blood deficiency, etc. Therefore, if you find that your tongue has cracks, it is best to go to the hospital to consult a doctor in time, otherwise it is easy to lead to other diseases.