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Introduction-Tongue injuries in children vary from slight lacerations to complete amputations. It could be due to fall, self-mutilation, epilepsy, child abuse, or sport injury. The anterior dorsum is the most common site followed by the mid dorsum and anterior ventral part. These injuries may cause dysfunction of tongue, hemorrhage, and disfigurement. Management of injuries of tongue in young children is challenging. There are no established guidelines for managing tongue lacerations. This is a case report of a three-year-old girl with a laceration on the anterolateral part of the tongue with non-approximating wound edges. The laceration extended from the dorsal to the ventral part. The parents were apprehensive about the surgical management of the injury due to the age of their daughter. Hence, healing of the injury with conservative management without suturing was achieved. Conclusion-The management of traumatic injuries of tongue in children is difficult due to their age and cooperation. The pediatrician has to decide whether to heal the tongue by primary or secondary intention. Our decision to allow the healing by secondary intention was successful. The tongue healed without any complications barring a small scar with satisfactory aesthetic and functional outcome. Both the parents and the child were satisfied with the management of the injury.

Tongue injuries in children vary from slight lacerations to complete amputation. It could be due to falls, self-mutilation, epilepsy, child abuse, or sports injuries. The anterior dorsum is the most common site, followed by the mid dorsum and anterior ventral part. These injuries may cause dysfunction of the tongue, hemorrhage, and disfigurement. Management of injuries of the tongue in young children is challenging. There are no established guidelines for managing tongue lacerations. This is a case report of a 3-year-old girl with a laceration on the anterolateral part of the tongue with nonapproximating wound edges. The laceration extended from the dorsal to the ventral part. The parents were apprehensive for the surgical management of the injury due to the age of their daughter. Hence, healing of the injury with conservative management without suturing was achieved. The management of traumatic injuries of the tongue in children is difficult due to their age and cooperation. The pediatrician has to decide whether to heal the tongue by primary or secondary intention. Our decision to allow the healing by secondary intention was successful. The tongue healed without any complications, barring a small scar, with satisfactory esthetic and functional outcome. Both the parents and the child were satisfied with the management of the injury.

This case report describes the management of tongue and lip lacerations due to dystonia in a 1-year-old infant. A splint was given to raise the bite and prevent repeated trauma and aid in healing of the oral tissue. This paper highlights the importance of pediatric dentist's role in improving quality of patient care in an intensive care unit.

AIMS OF THE STUDY Tongue lacerations are common in children, occurring mostly from falls or sports injuries. Optimal treatment of tongue lacerations is a challenge for paediatricians due to contradictory recommendations and a lack of current guidelines. It remains unclear which tongue lacerations should be sutured and which would benefit from spontaneous healing, which is a promising alternative. In recent years, the treatment of choice in our paediatric emergency department (ED) has shifted from generally suturing the wounds to more frequently advising secondary wound healing. The aim of this study was to analyse tongue lacerations treated at our ED in order to develop guidance for the optimal management of tongue lacerations in children. METHODS This retrospective study was conducted to assess tongue lacerations at the ED of a University Children’s Hospital Zurich from January 2010 to August 2015. All families were contacted for informed consent and photo documentation of the healed tongue. Clinical records of all the patients included were reviewed and different variables were defined and analysed. RESULTS A total of 73 children with tongue lacerations were included (75.3% boys, mean age ± standard deviation 4.0 ± 2.6 years). The mean size of the lacerations was 12.4 ± 8.3 mm, with affected tongue borders in 51 cases (69.9%) and a through-and-through laceration in 23 patients (31.5%). A primary wound closure was performed in 12 children (16.4%). These wounds were significantly larger than those of the secondary wound healing group (21 ± 10 mm compared to 10.8 ± 6.8 mm), presented gaping wound edges with the tongue at rest more frequently (91.7% compared to 32.8%), and showed through-and-through lacerations more often (91.7% compared to 19.7%). The group with wound suturing needed longer to recover (median 13 days compared to 6.2 days) and had a higher rate of complications (25 vs 3.3%). CONCLUSIONS Suturing is not required in gaping tongue lacerations less than 2 cm long that do not involve the tip of the tongue. The Zurich Tongue Scheme was developed as a guide for clinicians when deciding which tongue lacerations need suturing.