Scalloped Tongue Pictures, Causes, Treatment

Scalloped tongue, also known as crenulated tongue, crenated tongue, lingua indentata or pie crust tongue, is basically a descriptive term for the appearance of the tongue when there are indentations along the lateral sides. It occurs due to compression of the tongue against the adjacent teeth. It is also described as wavy tongue edges, indentation on side of tongue, rippled tongue edge, tongue ridges along sides, teeth marks on side of tongue, among other descriptions.

This medical condition normally occurs when your tongue becomes larger than normal. Due to larger than normal size, it will press onto your teeth. This tends to cause indentations. The reason behind the alteration in tongue size, as per homeopathy, is high blood pressure. When you have a tongue that is scalloped, it tends to be enlarged or be swollen with groove like impression of the teeth along the sides of the tongue. Maybe you doesn’t notice any difference in your natural tongue color, or might be some redness if there is pressure or friction on your tongue edges. You can have sore throat, swollen tongue, tongue pain, halitosis, in case if you are suffering from scalloped tongue condition.

Usually a scalloped or crenated tongue is considered absolutely harmless and it is not a disease on its own but a condition that results from other conditions and diseases. If you have a pale or white scalloped tongue, it might be an indication of digestive or sinus problem also. Before you go for treatment, right scalloped tongue diagnosis is very important. You should know what causes these problem before treating the underlying cause. You should carefully examine the symptoms that come with your tongue scalloping.

Scalloped Tongue Pictures, Causes, Treatment

If you are worried about marks along sides of your tongue and want to know the causes behind it then keep reading, below are almost all possible causes listed. You can also find the treatments for this condition.

Scalloped Tongue Pictures

Scalloped Tongue Causes

Some of the common causes of scalloped tongue include:

Swollen Tongue

Yes, if your tongue swells so much, it can alone cause the condition known as Scalloped Tongue. Your swallowed tongue will tend to apply pressure to your dental arches which will in turn make it scalloped. Its more than obvious and make sense that when tongue swells, it becomes too big for your mouth, leaving teeth marks around its edge.
Your tongue may swell due to allergies, some disease like amyloidosis, hypothyroidism, tongue cancer, canker sores, scarlet fever, angioedema. You may become surprised that your little negligence in your daily routine can also cause this problem. Yes, dehydration is also one among many other causes that can swollen your tongue.

Thyroid or hypothyroid

If you are suffering from deficiency of thyroid hormone due to non-functioning or underactive thyroid glands , a medical condition known as hypothyroidism, you can consider it as cause behind your swollen tongue. Thyroid hormone regulates the way in which the body uses energy , i.e. metabolism. So without enough of this hormone many of the body’s functions slow down. In most cases, you might have a swollen face and tongue, if you are suffering from thyroid hormone deficiency. Besides a scalloped and swollen tongue, there may other symptoms as well such as fatigue, hoarseness, hair thinning, a dry skin, constipation, muscle aches, depression, and increased sensitivity to cold.

Your Habits

Yes, it can be some of your habits that may responsible for such a condition. For example, if you are doing clenching, gridding or pressing your tongue against dental arches over prolonged periods of time, all of such activities results in scalloped tongue . Anxiety is another cause that make people to press their tongue against their teeth leading to this problem since it often causes muscle tensions.

Mineral and vitamins deficiency

There are many minerals and vitamins, which can cause such a condition, if they are in less than normal quantity. Folate and vitamin B-12 deficiency produce excess red blood cells, a condition known as megaloblastic anemia. In additions to these, iron deficiency can also lead to a swollen tongue. By taking vitamin B-12 and folate supplements as well as foods such as poultry, fish, eggs, fortified plant foods, diary, etc. that are rich in vitamin B-12, can solve the problem.

Painful Tongue

Sometimes, scalloped tongue might also indicate a possibility of oral cancer, especially if accompanied with a painful fissure or sore. Cancer has a lower likelihood and it will have many other oral cancer symptoms.

Scalloped Tongue Treatment

As mentioned above, before going for treatment, a careful examination is important in order to determine the cause behind such condition. Treatment of this condition involves treating the underlying problem. Generally, good dental oral care is recommended besides the specific treatments.

If the reason behind is thyroid hormone deficiency, it can be treated with hypothyroidism. In this treatment, hormone replacement tablets are usually taken daily. Treatment involves managing stress, eating foods rich in vitamin B as well as radiation therapy.If your tongue is not swollen but still has teeth marks, you might be having a narrower lower jaw. Jaw surgical remodeling and fixing teeth that do not fix well can be a solution if your case is due to some joint disorder.