tongue spot

Hi there.  A vet tech in the general forum suggested I post here.  I uploaded a picture to my profile.  The spot has been slowly growing in diameter for 3 yrs or so.  & there are others that are smaller and new.  In the photo if you start at the crease of the tongue, the oldest spot in ? is on the tip to the left (ours).  There are others along the tip and inward that are new.  I was asked to consider a biopsy.  She was just in for teeth cleaning last week.  I'll anesthetize her again if need be, but I do kind of worry about the complications.  Her overall tongue is more red in this photo so the spot is less noticeable right now.  Usually it's bright red as are the other spots.   Any opinions? Thanks much.

[Arnold L Goldman, D.V.M.]

Dear Kimpton,

I apologize for the delay in responding to your question.

I have looked at the photo and what I think I see are ulcerations of the tongue surface, which is called "mucosa", at the edge and also in from the edge of the tongue. In people ulcerations of tongue mucosa like that are sometimes called "chancre sores" and can be caused by a variety of things including but not limited to viruses,  anything which weakens the immune process of the body surfaces, unusual bacteria and even acidic foods or substances. A favorite toy for example could harbor substances or bacteria which might cause ulcerations.

Your veterinarian is correct to request a biopsy. The lesion has been there 3 years and is growing. Your dog did well during his recent anesthesia. Too bad the biopsy couldnt have been done during the recent dentistry but there may have been other factors which made this not possible, for example:  anesthesia time, your advance permission, added cost, etc.

I would not hesitate further as the anticipatable, and remote possible complications of another anesthesia episode are minimal compared to leaving a worsening disease process untreated, perhaps a form of cancer for example. Delay can mean the difference between curable and incurable in such a case.

Please get that biopsy and do let us know what is found. Good luck!

Sincerely,

Dr. Arnold Goldman

PS: On another note, regarding your comment in "other pertinent test results":
"vet said white stripe on nose is a def.  changed diet and stripe is slowly going away." Please consider that simply because a white stripe goes away when a diet change is made, does not make the diet change the reason why it went away. Whatever the white stripe was, it may have gone away all on its own with no treatment. Vitamin deficiencies can be verified with tests and specific supplementation can be given when a real deficiency is verified. Vitamin deficiencies in pets eating national brand, commercial pet foods are rare in my limited 23 years of practice experience.  (The truth is that the biggest nutritional problem in our pets in the USA is obesity.
All other nutritional issues combined are miniscule compared to this.) Its important not to over-interpret cause and effect in medicine, especially when considering "treatments" so that we do not ascribe benefits to a treatment beyond what is true. Doing so may cost a future pet time needed to identify or treat another problem.