Clinico-pathologic review of biopsied tongue lesions in a Nigerian tertiary hospital

Background : Varying pathologic conditions can affect the tongue for which the pattern of occurrence may differ. The aim of this study was to review the clinico-pathologic features of histologically diagnosed cases of tongue lesions that presented in our hospital over a 21 years period. Materials and Methods : Data on habits, class of lesion, histological diagnosis, age, gender, and site distributions were analyzed using descriptive frequencies, ranges and means ± SD. Variables were compared using Chi square and ANOVA tests as appropriate. Sites of lesions were coded using the WHO ICD-O code on topography. Results: Tongue lesions were seen in 43 males and 31 females. There was a bimodal peak age of occurrence at 40-49 and 60-69 years of age. Smoking and alcohol intake habits were recorded in 8 cases only. Neoplastic lesions constituted 78.4% of the cases. Using the WHO ICD-O code for topography of lesions, the tongue dorsum (ICD-O-2.0) was the most commonly affected site. Malignant lesions constituted 47.3% of the cases seen. Also, 8.6% of the malignant lesions were seen in younger patients (< 40 years). Conclusions: Tongue lesions showed a bimodal age of occurrence with neoplastic lesions as the most histologically diagnosed lesions in our study.