A grooved tongue occurs when the tongue is forcefully pushed between the upper and lower teeth and the sides of the tongue develop grooves. In most cases the tongue is supporting an injured jaw joint. One or both joints may be tender, click or pop. Many patients are not even aware that they are doing this and the tongue is usually not tender.

          A TMJ patient often has a grooved tongue. Most TMJ patients have headaches which are almost always mis-diagnosed as migraines. A hypo-thyroid patient can also have a grooved tongue.

          The grooved tongue usually disappears when the patient wears a soft mouth guard. The guard takes the place of the tongue in supporting the jaw joint and the tongue can relax and not push in between the teeth.

          Fissured Tongue is sometimes called a grooved tongue. Fissured tongue is a benign condition where there are lots of fissures on the top of the tongue. The surface fissures may differ in size and depth, radiate outward, and make the tongue look wrinkled. Fissured tongue is also called scrotal or plicated tongue.

          A grooved tongue is a symptom of another problem and so should be investigated by a dentist. If you would like to consult with Dr. Padolsky, please make an appointment by calling 404-874-7428.