Interna tional Jo urna l o f M ultidisciplina ry Research and Develo pment 2014 ; 1 (7 ): 12 4-125
IJMRD 2014; 1(7): 124-125
www.allsubjectjournal.com
Received: 15-11-2014
Accepted: 05-12-2014
e-ISSN: 2349-4182
p-ISSN: 2349-5979
Impact Factor: 3.762
Srinivas K
Professor and HOD, Dept. of
OMDR, Career Post-Graduate
Institute of Dental Sciences,
Lucknow
Jyoti Gupta
Professor, Dept. of OMDR,
Career Post Graduate Institute
of Dental Sciences, Lucknow.
Ratnakar P
Professor, Dept. of OMDR,
Career Post-Graduate Institute
of Dental Sciences, Lucknow
Arti Saluja Sachdev
Senior Lecturer, Dept. of
OMDR, Career Post-Graduate
Institute of Dental Sciences,
Lucknow
Vasu Saxena
Senior Lecturer, Dept. of
OMDR, Career Post-Graduate
Institute of Dental Sciences,
Lucknow
Taseer Bashir
Post Graduate student, Dept.
of OMDR, Career Post-
Graduate Institute of Dental
Sciences, Lucknow
Correspondence:
Taseer Bashir
Post Graduate student, Dept.
of OMDR, Career Post-
Graduate Institute of Dental
Sciences, Lucknow
Anatomy of tongue - A review article
Srinivas K, Jyoti Gupta, Ratnakar P, Arti Saluja Sachdev, Vasu Saxena,
Taseer Bashir
Abstract
The tongue is a movable organ, which plays an important role in mastication swallowing
suckling and in speech. It is partly oral and partly pharyngeal in position. When at rest and
the mouth is closed, it fills the oral cavity, resting in the lingual surfaces of the teeth, beneath
the under surface of the hard and soft palate. The tip of the tongue is usually in contact with
the hard palate behind the upper incisor teeth. The present article presents a review of tongue
covering anatomy and applied aspects.
Keywords: tongue, papillae, lymphatic system, lesions
Introduction
The mucosa over the tongue is normally pink and moist. The root of the tongue is attached to
the hyoid bone and the mandible and in between them it is in contact inferiorly with the
geniohyoid and the mylohyoid muscles.1,2 The dorsum of the tongue is divided into an
anterior part facing upwards and posterior part facing posteriorly, a V shaped sulcus
terminalis separates these. Hence the anterior part is called the presulcal or oral or papillary
part and the posterior part is called the post sulcal or pharangeal or glandular part. The limbs
of the sulcus run anteriolaterally and form a median foramen caecum (from where the thyroid
has its origin) and end with the palatoglossal arches.3
Papillae of the tongue
These are the projections of lamina propria which elevate the epithelium and gives the
anterior two third of the tongue its characteristic roughness. These are of five types: valllate,
fungiform, filiform, foliate & papillae simplices.4
Muscles of the tongue5
The tongue is divided into right and left halves by a median fibrous septum. Each half
contains two sets of muscles, which are intrinsic and extrinsic.
Intrinsic muscles include; 1) Superior longitudinal 2) Inferior longitudinal 3) Transverse &
4) Vertical while Extrinsic muscles include; 1) Genioglossus 2) Hyoglossus 3) Styloglossus
4) Palatoglossus & 5) Chondroglossus.
Movements of the tongue
The tongue is used in sucking in prehension of food, in chewing in swallowing and in
speaking. It is also used for licking of lips. The intrinsic muscles alter the shapes of the
tongue; the extrinsic muscles stabilize the organ and by their contraction alter its position as
well as its shape.
Alteration of shape
The transverse muscle narrows the tongue and consequently heaps the dorsum into a side-to-
side convexity. With simultaneous contraction of the vertical muscle this convexity is
flattened and since the total volume of the tongue remains constant, the organ becomes
elongated and pointed at the tip, if now the lowest fibers of geniglossous contract the back of
the tongue is extruded. Contraction of longitudinal fibers shortens the tongue, which then
becomes concave from front to back. Contraction of the vertical fibers produces a midline
groove with consequent heaping up of the sides of the tongue as in the first stage of
swallowing.6
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International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development

Alteration of position References

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3. Injury to the hypoglossul nerve produces paralysis of the
muscles of the tongue on the side of lesion. If the lesion 5. Kronert H, Pleschka K. Lingual blood flow and its
is infranuclear, there is gradual atrophy of the affected hypothalamic control in the dog during
half of the tongue (hemiatrophy). Muscular twitchings panting. Pflgers Archiv European Journal of
are also observed. Infranuclear lesions of the Physiology 1976; 367: 25-31
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seen in pseudobulbar palsy where the tongue is stiff,
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4. Glossitis is usually a part of generalized ulceration of the 20 ISBN 1-112-23645-7
mouth cavity (stomatitis). In certain anemias the tongue
becomes bald due to atrophy of the filiform papillae.
5. The presence of a rich network of lymphatics and of
loose areolar tissue of the substance of the tongue is
responsible for enormous swelling of the tongue in acute
glossitis. The tongue fills up the mouth cavity and then
protrudes out of it.
6. The undersurface of the tongue is a good site (along with
the bulbar conjunctiva) for observation of jaundice.7
7. In unconscious patients the tongue may fall back and
obstruct the air passages. This can be prevented either by
lying the patient on one side with head down (the tonsil
position) or by keeping the tongue pulled out
mechanically.
8. In patients with grand mal epilepsy the tongue is
commonly bitten between the teeth during the attack.
This can be prevented by hurriedly putting in a mouth
gag at the onset of the seizure.
9. Carcinoma of the tongue is quite common. It is better
treated by radiotherapy than by surgery. But facilities for
irradiation are not always available; the affected side of
the tongue is removed surgically. All the deep cervical
lymph nodes are also removed (block dissection of neck)
because recurrence of malignant disease occurs in lymph
nodes. Carcinoma of the posterior one third of the
tongue is more dangerous due to bilateral lymphatic
spread.

Conclusion
The knowledge of normal anatomy of tongue and associated
structures is of significance as until and unless we know
what is normal, we cant differentiate pathological changes.
This review article presented a short note on the anatomy and
applied aspects of tongue.

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