An American has contracted a particular condition: “hairy tongue” syndrome, which covered his tongue with green hairs.
- A 64-year-old man was examined by a doctor after his tongue became covered in green “hairs”.
- These hairs were caused by a fairly common and harmless condition known as “hairy tongue syndrome”.
- It can manifest in different colors depending on the bits of food, bacteria, and dead skin cells that are trapped in the tiny cone-shaped bumps that cover the surface of the tongue and give it its rough texture.
It’s a strange but very real medical case: a man saw his tongue covered in thick green fur. Living in Ohio he went to the emergency room where the syndrome of “hairy tongue” was diagnosed by doctors.
“Hairy tongue” syndrome: an impressive but harmless disorder
“A 64-year-old man who currently smokes presented with tongue discoloration for two weeks. On examination, the tongue showed filiform papillae and green discoloration.”detailed a report published on July 6, 2023 in the New England Journal of Medicine. This disorder is not serious for health: hairy tongue, or lingua villosa, is a benign condition that causes the growth of hairs of different colors on the top of the tongue, experts said.
These growths are thread-like papillae that have not fallen off as they normally should upon contact with rough objects, such as a toothbrush, tongue scraper, or solid, textured foods indicates the Cleveland Clinic: “ITaste buds typically grow a fraction of an inch (1 millimeter) before shedding off as a layer of skin that is shed in a process known as desquamation. When not regularly removed, the papillae can reach a length of 18 millimeters and give rise to a hairy tongue.”
His tongue took 6 months to regain its normal appearance
Known predisposing factors are smoking, excessive consumption of coffee or black tea, poor oral hygiene or taking medication. In this particular case, the patient’s tongue had turned green about two weeks before his clinic visit, shortly after antibiotic treatment for a gum infection had ended.
According to’American Academy of Oral Medicine, the condition affects approximately 13% of people at some point in their lives, with the majority of cases occurring in men and patients over 65 years of age. Doctors advised the green-tongued patient to gently rub his tongue with a toothbrush four times a day and to quit smoking. “After six months, the appearance of the tongue had returned to normal, although the patient continued to smoke“, write the doctors in their report.