1999 年 14 巻 2 号 p. 161-164
One of the major causes of glossalgia is mental stress.
We had a patient complaining of persistent tongue pain and a tumor on the right upper lip, which we found difficult to treat.
The case was as follows: Case: A 52 year-old female patient complained of spontaneous pain in the proglossis and tumor formation on the right upper lip.
History: The entire tongue turned white in January 1998. After consulting many medical institutions for one year, she was finally referred to us. She also displayed a tumor on the right upper lip and requested treatment for this at our department.
Background: She had been divorced at 37 and raised her two children by herself. Her son was killed in a traffic accident at 24, which gave her a great shock. Since then, she had lived by herself and suffered from continuous sleeplessness, anxiety, and hypobulia. Eventually, she also started feeling pain in the tongue. She came to us after consulting with many other medical institutions.
Progress of treatment: She was referred to our psychiatric department and treated by both departments. Once her tongue pain had been slightly alleviated, we admitted her to hospital and excised the tumor on her upper lip. Her daughter nursed her while she was in hospital. This reduced her sense of solitude and alleviated the glossalgia.
The tongue pain shows signs of remission but has not completely gone.