What causes geographic tongue?

Unknown: Geographic tongue is a benign condition where parts of the tongue swell and other parts become smooth, leading to a MAP like appearance. The cause is unknown.

Geographic Tongue: Geographic tongue is a harmless condition affecting the surface of your tongue. The tongue is normally covered with tiny, pinkish-white bumps (papillae). With geographic tongue, patches on the surface of the tongue are missing papillae and appear as smooth, red "islands, " often with slightly raised borders. This condition can run in famines and is thus genetic.