Why Did This Man's Taste Buds Disappear?

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His tongue's strange appearance would turn out to be a sign of an underlying blood condition.

A man's tongue was missing "papillae," or the small bumps on the tongue that often contain taste buds (A). After treatment, the man's tongue returned to normal (B).
A man's tongue was missing "papillae," or the small bumps on the tongue that often contain taste buds (A). After treatment, the man's tongue returned to normal (B). (Image credit: The New England Journal of Medicine ©2019)

When a 64-year-old man stuck out his tongue for a physical exam, doctors could immediately tell something was off: Instead of a typical, textured tongue, his was smooth and shiny. It didn't take long for them to recognize why: The man's taste buds were missing.

His tongue's strange appearance would turn out to be a sign of an underlying blood condition that required a relatively simple treatment, according to a new report of the case.

Doctors from the National University of Singapore observed that the man's glossy tongue was missing "papillae," the small bumps on the tongue that often contain taste buds.

The man's symptoms fit a condition called atrophic glossitis, or inflammation of the tongue that leads to changes in color and texture, including the loss of many papillae, according to Healthline.

But what had caused the atrophic glossitis? Blood tests revealed an important clue: The man's levels of vitamin B12 were very low.

In the man's case, he received shots of vitamin B12, and within one month, his tongue was back to normal. He will continue to need regular vitamin B12 shots to keep him from developing a vitamin B12 deficiency. 

Originally published on Live Science. 

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Rachael Rettner
Rachael Rettner
Contributor

Rachael is a Live Science contributor, and was a former channel editor and senior writer for Live Science between 2010 and 2022. She has a master's degree in journalism from New York University's Science, Health and Environmental Reporting Program. She also holds a B.S. in molecular biology and an M.S. in biology from the University of California, San Diego. Her work has appeared in Scienceline, The Washington Post and Scientific American.