Correlation between extent and clinical severity, and histopathological characteristics of geographic tongue

Geographic tongue is an oral lesion with an unknown etiology.Recently, the Geographic Tongue Area and Sev erity Index (GTASI) has been proposed to assess the area and severity of geographic tongue, aiming to measure the clinical severity of this condition. However, this index does not account for the histopathology, which may vary based on the clinical stage of the lesion and the biopsy area. Our present study aimed to evaluate the correlation between GTASI score and its histopathological features.

This cross-sectional observational study included 40 participants diagnosed with GT confirmed both clinically and histopathologically.

Considering GT severity, the majority, 60%, of cases were classified as mild, with female predominance in both the mild and severe categories. The average age of participants was 56 for mild and severe cases and 47 for moderate ones. The prevalent histopathological features of geographic tongue included parakeratosis, acanthosis, spongiosis, basal layer hyperplasia, mono- and polymorphonuclear exocytosis, suprapapillary hypotrophy, claviform epithelial ridges, fusion of epithelial ridges, conjunctival papillary oedema, and chronic subepithelial infiltration, with no significant differences taking into consideration the clinical severity level. Papillary vascular ectasia, Munro microabscesses, Kogoj pustules, and dense connective tissue were more prevalent in patients with more severe cases of GT. Mild inflammatory infiltrate intensity was predominant in patients with mild GT, while moderate infiltrate intensity was found predominantly in moderate cases of GT.

The clinical severity level of GT closely corresponds with its histopathological characteristics.