Dentists have been known to diagnose a variety of ailments using the oral cavity, which is meant to be a reflection of general health. COVID tongue is one of the most recent symptoms associated with coronavirus infection, and dentists may play a key part in this. It’s time to visit the best dental hospital in Bhubaneswar and get a thorough checkup done.
What’s cooking in genius minds?
After Tim Spector, a professor of genetic epidemiology at King’s College London, tweeted about individuals with COVID tongue and ulcers, the name “COVID tongue” was coined. Mr Spector is the leader of the ZOE COVID-19 Symptom Study app, which allows users to report their symptoms on a regular basis. In his investigation, he discovered that nearly 1-2 people out of every 500 experienced weird symptoms in their mouths, such as tongue enlargement, strange patches on the tongues, and ulcers. However, there has been an upsurge in user uploads of tongues with unusual appearances, particularly white and patchy tongues.
The COVID Tongue has been compared to Geographic Tongue, an inflammatory disorder affecting the surface of the tongue, according to the British Dental Journal, published by Springer Nature. While there may be a link between Geographic Tongue and SARS-CoV-2 infection, there have only been two reports of it as part of COVID-19 sickness in the literature to date. The symptoms may be connected to greater inflammatory cytokine Interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels in both Geographic Tongue and SARS-CoV-2 infection, as well as higher angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor expression in the tongue, where ACE2 receptors are also the SARS-CoV-2 virus entry point.
Diagnosing Covid Tongue
COVID Tongue’s diagnostic value is still unknown, hence it should be used with caution. These changes to the lips or tongue may not be the only indication of COVID-19, nor do they always occur at the same time. According to reports, the COVID Tongue is one of the “non-classic symptoms” that is often neglected since COVID is not related with every ulcer or patch in the mouth. This could be a very early sign in a recent discovery.
Kalinga Dental, a leading dental hospital in Bhubaneswar, can help you with diagnosing early symptoms in this phase of pandemic and can suggest you the further treatment to approach.