Reviewed By:
Unnati Patel, MD, MSc (Family Medicine)
Dr.Patel serves as Center Medical Director and a Primary Care Physician at Oak Street Health in Arizona. She graduated from the Zhejiang University School of Medicine prior to working in clinical research focused on preventive medicine at the University of Illinois and the University of Nevada. Dr. Patel earned her MSc in Global Health from Georgetown University, during which she worked with the WHO in Sierra Leone and Save the Children in Washington, D.C. She went on to complete her Family Medicine residency in Chicago at Norwegian American Hospital before completing a fellowship in Leadership in Value-based Care in conjunction with the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management, where she earned her MBA. Dr. Patel’s interests include health tech and teaching medical students and she currently serves as Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Arizona School of Medicine.
Yoshinori Abe, MD (Internal Medicine)
Dr. Abe graduated from The University of Tokyo School of Medicine in 2015. He completed his residency at the Tokyo Metropolitan Health and Longevity Medical Center. He co-founded Ubie, Inc. in May 2017, where he currently serves as CEO & product owner at Ubie. Since December 2019, he has been a member of the Special Committee for Activation of Research in Emergency AI of the Japanese Association for Acute Medicine. | | Dr. Abe has been elected in the 2020 Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia Healthcare & Science category.
Content updated on Jan 15, 2024
Following the Medical Content Editorial Policy
Worried about your symptoms?
Choose one to start our AI Symptom Checker.
It will help us optimize further questions for you.
By starting the symptom checker, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
Tongue and throat are white
White layer coating tongue
Tongue turned white
White layer coating back of throat
White cheesy substance in throat
Find another symptom
Search for another symptom
With an easy 3-min questionnaire , Ubie's AI-powered system will generate a free report on possible causes.
Questions are customized to your situation and symptoms, including the following personal information:
Biological Sex - helps us provide relevant suggestions for male vs. female conditions.
Age - adjusts our guidance based on any age-related health factors.
History - considers past illnesses, surgeries, family history, and lifestyle choices.
Your symptoms
Our AI
Your report
Your personal report will tell you
✔ When to see a doctor
✔︎ What causes your symptoms
✔︎ Treatment information etc.
Generally, Whitish, curd-like substances in the tongue/mouth can be related to:
This is a group of disorders affecting the immune system, reducing the body's ability to defend itself from infections and other diseases. A person can be born with such a condition (congenital) or acquire it (acquired). The severity and impact on the immune system can vary widely depending on the cause. Congenital conditions are usually due to inherited gene mutations, while acquired conditions can be caused by drugs, infections, long-term conditions and treatments, or other environmental factors.
Inflammation of the mouth surface causes ulcers. Various factors can cause this, such as vitamin deficiencies, medications, and autoimmunity (the body's immune system attacking itself). Often, no clear cause is found, and the ulcers heal on their own.
Secondary Immunodeficiency Syndrome
Secondary immunodeficiency syndrome results in a weakened immune system due to an underlying condition or external factors.
Primary Immunodeficiency Syndrome
Sometimes, Whitish, curd-like substances in the tongue/mouth may be related to these serious diseases:
Acute HIV infection occurs in some people during the first 4 weeks after contracting the HIV virus. The virus rapidly attacks immune cells and causes fever, headache, and sometimes a rash. The patient is highly contagious during this time as the viral load is high. Risk factors for transmitting HIV include unprotected sexual activity and contaminated needle stick injuries (e.g., via tattoos or sharing needles). Rarely, it is transmitted through the transfusion of blood products.
Your doctor may ask these questions to check for this symptom:
Reviewed By:
Unnati Patel, MD, MSc (Family Medicine)
Dr.Patel serves as Center Medical Director and a Primary Care Physician at Oak Street Health in Arizona. She graduated from the Zhejiang University School of Medicine prior to working in clinical research focused on preventive medicine at the University of Illinois and the University of Nevada. Dr. Patel earned her MSc in Global Health from Georgetown University, during which she worked with the WHO in Sierra Leone and Save the Children in Washington, D.C. She went on to complete her Family Medicine residency in Chicago at Norwegian American Hospital before completing a fellowship in Leadership in Value-based Care in conjunction with the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management, where she earned her MBA. Dr. Patel’s interests include health tech and teaching medical students and she currently serves as Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Arizona School of Medicine.
Yoshinori Abe, MD (Internal Medicine)
Dr. Abe graduated from The University of Tokyo School of Medicine in 2015. He completed his residency at the Tokyo Metropolitan Health and Longevity Medical Center. He co-founded Ubie, Inc. in May 2017, where he currently serves as CEO & product owner at Ubie. Since December 2019, he has been a member of the Special Committee for Activation of Research in Emergency AI of the Japanese Association for Acute Medicine. | | Dr. Abe has been elected in the 2020 Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia Healthcare & Science category.
This symptom checker site is a great resource to either get an idea of what is happening inside your body or even get a second opinion without incurring another huge bill. It also provides a way to connect with a professional if needed. I really enjoy this site.
Aug 30, 2024 (Female, 40s)
Our symptom checker AI is continuously refined with input from experienced physicians, empowering them to make more accurate diagnoses.