A recent study from Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine has found that the appearance and bacterial composition of the tongue could provide clues about chronic heart failure.
This research suggests that examining the tongue might be a simple and non-invasive way to help diagnose and monitor this condition.
In healthy individuals, the tongue is typically pale red with a thin, pale white coating. However, people with chronic heart failure often have a redder tongue with a yellow coating. The researchers observed that these changes become more pronounced as the disease progresses.
The study also found that the microorganisms living on the tongue differ significantly between heart failure patients and healthy individuals.
Using samples taken from 42 patients with chronic heart failure and 28 healthy participants, the researchers analyzed the tongue’s microbiome—the community of bacteria living on its surface.
To ensure accurate results, participants were carefully selected. None had oral or dental diseases, recent respiratory infections, or had taken antibiotics or immunosuppressants in the past week.
Tongue coating samples were collected in the morning before participants brushed their teeth or ate. The researchers used a technique called 16S rRNA gene sequencing to identify the bacteria present.
The findings revealed no overlap in the bacterial composition of the two groups. Heart failure patients shared a distinct set of microorganisms on their tongues, while healthy individuals had their own characteristic bacterial profile.
At a more detailed level, five types of bacteria distinguished heart failure patients from healthy people. The researchers were able to predict heart failure with 84% accuracy based on these differences.
Additionally, as heart failure worsened, certain bacteria like Eubacterium and Solobacterium became less abundant, suggesting that bacterial changes may track disease progression.
This study builds on earlier research showing that tongue bacteria could help identify other diseases, such as pancreatic cancer.
It also highlights the role of bacteria in inflammation and immunity—two processes that are closely linked to both heart failure and other chronic diseases.
The researchers believe that analyzing tongue microbes could become a practical tool for large-scale screening and diagnosis of heart failure. The samples are easy to collect and could also help monitor how the condition changes over time.
However, more research is needed to fully understand how tongue bacteria and heart function are connected. While this study offers exciting potential for using the tongue as a diagnostic tool, the exact mechanisms linking these bacteria to heart health remain unclear.
This innovative approach could pave the way for new methods of diagnosing and managing heart failure, making it easier to catch the disease early and monitor its progression. The study, led by Dr. Tianhui Yuan, was published in the Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine journal.
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