The tongue is a muscular organ belonging to the digestive system. In the specific case of dogs, it fulfills truly important functions, because in addition to being essential for the intake of water and food, it allows these animals to modulate their body temperature thanks to the panting mechanism. When cell death occurs in part of the tongue tissue as a result of an attack, we speak of tongue necrosis
If you want to know more about tongue necrosis in dogs, don't miss the following article on our site in which we talk about its possible causes and treatment.
What is tongue necrosis in dogs?
Before explaining what canine tongue necrosis is, it is worth knowing some important facts about the tongue of dogs. The tongue is an organ that belongs to the digestive system. It is a muscle lined with mucosa, which has 3 parts:
- The root: is the deepest part of the tongue, which is attached to the oral cavity at the level of the beginning of the pharynx.
- The body: forms the bulk of the tongue. Although it is mobile, it is held by the frenulum. Dogs are characterized by having a very marked groove in the center of the body of the tongue.
- The vertex: the tip of the tongue.
Its functions are multiple and include:
- Water intake and food handling.
- The perception of taste: flavor, texture, temperature, etc.
- Cleaning by licking.
- Panting: it is essential in dogs since, lacking sweat glands in their dermis, they need an alternative mechanism to sweating to reduce body temperature when it rises.
Once the structure and functions of the tongue have been explained, we can proceed to expose what canine tongue necrosis is.
Well, tongue necrosis consists of the cellular death of the living tissue of the tongue as a result of an aggression. The agents capable of producing this tissue necrosis can be classified into 5 types:
- Ischemia or anoxia: occurs as a consequence of the decrease or absence of oxygen supply to the cells, due to a failure in the blood supply.
- Toxic or chemical agents.
- Physical agents: such as trauma, cold, heat, or even electrical energy (electrocution).
- Biological agents: such as bacteria, viruses or protozoa, as well as the toxins they produce.
- Immunological mechanisms.
Causes of tongue necrosis in dogs
Once the different agents capable of producing tissue necrosis have been explained, it is convenient to detail the most frequent causes that can give rise to canine tongue necrosis:
- Procesionary Caterpillar: Each processionary caterpillar has thousands of stinging hairs, like fine needles, which contain a powerful toxin: the thaumetopein. When this toxin comes into contact with mucous membranes, including the tongue, it causes tissue necrosis.
- Other toxicological causes: Although the processionary caterpillar is the toxicological cause par excellence, there are other toxic substances capable of producing tongue necrosis, such as acids or caustics.
- Thrombosis or thromboembolism: when a clot obstructs the lingual circulation, an area of necrosis is produced due to the lack of irrigation blood in the area (ischemia).
- Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD): in the course of CKD there is an increase in blood urea levels (uremia). Bacteria present in saliva convert excess urea to ammonia, which produces uremic stomatitis with ulcers and areas of necrosis on the tongue and other structures of the oral cavity.
- Leptospirosis: is an infectious disease caused by bacteria of the genus Leptospira. In these cases, tongue necrosis can occur as a result of two factors: thrombosis and/or vasculitis.
Symptoms of tongue necrosis in dogs
In the early stages of tongue necrosis, the tongue often appears swollen and cyanotic (purple-bluish in color), with a reddish halo around of the area of necrosis. However, as time passes, the tongue begins to turn dark or greenish in color and loss begins to occur. of fabric
In addition, tongue necrosis is often accompanied by other signs such as:
- Pain in the oral cavity.
- Anorexia: loss of appetite, as a result of pain in the oral cavity. If you want to know more about Anorexia in dogs: its causes, diagnosis and treatment, don't hesitate to take a look at the following article on our site.
- Dysphagia: difficulty swallowing.
- Sialorrhea (drooling): inability to keep saliva inside the mouth as a result of dysphagia.
Diagnosis of tongue necrosis in dogs
The diagnosis of tongue necrosis in dogs requires not only identifying the lesion at the lingual level, but also determining the cause that has produced it. To do this, the veterinary team that treats you must follow the following steps:
- Anamnesis and clinical history: in these cases, it is essential to carry out a complete anamnesis, with questions aimed at possible ingestion or contact with toxic products.
- Physical examination: As we have explained, tongue necrosis will manifest itself with a change in the color of the tongue (purple hues, greenish or blackish, depending on the phase) and with tissue loss.
- Complementary tests: it may be necessary to carry out laboratory tests, such as blood and urine tests, microbiological diagnoses, etc. to identify the cause of necrosis.
Treatment of tongue necrosis in dogs
Treatment of tongue necrosis can vary depending on the severity of the process and the cause that caused the necrosis. In general, the therapeutic approach to this alteration may include the following points:
- Support treatment: aims to treat the pain and discomfort associated with this process, until healing occurs. Among other things, they can administer painkillers or sedatives, even help the healing of the tongue using laser therapy
- Specific treatment: once the cause of tongue necrosis has been identified, it is essential to establish a specific therapy against it, otherwise, the necrosis process could continue advancing. For example, in the case of chronic kidney disease, it will be necessary to establish medical treatment (with hypotensive agents, fluid therapy, etc.) and diet. In the case of vasculitis, treatment with corticosteroids will be necessary to prevent vascular damage from progressing further. In case of leptospirosis, antibiotic treatment will be required.
- Surgical treatment: In severe cases, surgery may be required to remove necrotic tissue.
Prognosis of tongue necrosis in dogs
The prognosis of canine tongue necrosis is reserved, since the early diagnosis and initiation of treatment will determine the process severity.
Therefore, whenever you detect any alteration in your dog's tongue or that you suspect that he has had contact with any toxin (including processionary caterpillars) , do not hesitate to go immediately to your trusted vet. If early treatment is started, the process will be resolved without complications, and the only sequela will be the loss of a small part of lingual tissue.
However, if action is not taken promptly, the necrosis can progress to the point where practically the entire tongue is affected, which will have a fatal outcome since it will be incompatible with the life of the patient. animal.
Prevention of tongue necrosis in dogs
To avoid the appearance of tongue necrosis in dogs, all those factors that can cause it must be prevented. For it:
- Avoid taking walks through pine forests: especially in the spring months, to avoid any accidental exposure to the processionary caterpillar.
- Keep any chemical and toxic products out of reach of your pets.
- Compliance with the vaccination schedule prescribed by your veterinarian: in this case, the prevention of Leptospirosis will be especially important.
- Compliance with your dog's regular veterinary check-ups: through these check-ups, pathologies such as Chronic Kidney Disease can be detected in their first phases, and in this way the appearance of complications such as lingual necrosis can be avoided.
