Rare diseases · Sign or symptom
Bifid tongue
Cleft tongue
HP:0010297
What it means
Tongue with a median apical indentation or fork.
Bifid tongue can be associated with ankyloglossia, but this should be assessed and coded separately. Small indentations of the tip of the tongue should not be coded as a bifid tongue.
Rare diseases that can present with this18
Common30–79%
11Sometimes5–29%
6- Cleft lip/palate-intestinal malrotation-cardiopathy syndrome
- Neurodevelopmental disorder-craniofacial dysmorphism-cardiac defect-skeletal anomalies syndrome due to 9q21.3 microdeletion
- Neurodevelopmental disorder-craniofacial dysmorphism-cardiac defect-skeletal anomalies syndrome due to a point mutation
- Robinow syndrome
- Short rib-polydactyly syndrome, Verma-Naumoff type
- Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome
The range is how often this sign appears among people diagnosed with each disease — it is not a probability of having any of them. Many of these signs also occur in common, non-rare conditions. A sign on this page is a conversation to have with a clinician, not a conclusion.
Part of the broader category
Also called: Bifurcated tongue · Bilobed tongue · Forked tongue · Snake tongue · Split tongue
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Start free with EleplanThis page uses the Human Phenotype Ontology (2026-06-23) — Human Phenotype Ontology Consortium, hpo.jax.org. Disease associations from Orphanet (INSERM), CC BY 4.0. Content is educational and is not medical advice.