What is the significance of tongue-biting?
In patients presenting with a history of syncope, it represents an insensitive but highly specific clue to the
diagnosis of generalized tonic-clonic seizures, especially when the biting involves the side of the
tongue. In a study of 106 consecutive patients admitted to an epilepsy monitoring unit, tongue-biting had a
sensitivity of 24% and a specificity of 99% for the diagnosis of generalized tonic-clonic seizures. Lateral
tongue-biting had a specificity of 100%.
In patients presenting with a history of syncope, it represents an insensitive but highly specific clue to the
diagnosis of generalized tonic-clonic seizures, especially when the biting involves the side of the
tongue. In a study of 106 consecutive patients admitted to an epilepsy monitoring unit, tongue-biting had a
sensitivity of 24% and a specificity of 99% for the diagnosis of generalized tonic-clonic seizures. Lateral
tongue-biting had a specificity of 100%.