Partial amputation of the tongue--self-inflicted or physical assault?

Injuries of the tongue are generally self-inflicted lesions and occur during different diseases or external incidents. The amputation of the tongue is a rare event. In this article, we report about a woman presenting with a complete amputation of the anterior third of the tongue. The morphological findings, which are essential for the differentiation of self-inflicted injuries and injuries caused by a third party, are demonstrated.