Introduction: Salivary secretion is influenced by a large number of factors, including the circadian rhythm, making the detection of reduced salivary flow (hyposalivation) difficult. This is important since severely reduced salivary secretion has been associated with an increased risk for dental caries and may be a sign of a general disease, e.g. Sjögren's syndrom. It has been suggested that ir...

BACKGROUND Diabetes mellitus is one of the most prevalent metabolic diseases, with complications such as decreased salivary flow rate and xerostomia. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to determine the salivary flow rate and xerostomia in type I and II diabetic patients in comparison with healthy controls. METHODS This case-control study was performed on diabetic patients of a private office in Bab...

Background: The smoke of tobacco during smoking is spread to all parts of the oral cavity and therefore, the taste receptors, a primary receptor site for salivary secretion, are constantly exposed. Generally it is accepted that long term use of tobacco decreases the sensitivity of taste receptors which in turn leads to depressed salivary reflex. Presumably, this might lead to altered taste rece...

BACKGROUND One of the most common causes of hypothyroidism is Hashimoto's Thyroiditis (HT). Early detection of dry mouth is critical in preserving and promoting systemic and oral health. In this study we have assessed, for the first time, salivary function and xerostomia in HT patients who have not been involved with Sjögren's syndrome. MATERIAL AND METHODS HT was diagnosed in 40 patients bas...

Saliva samples are useful for noninvasive diagnosis of oral and systemic diseases. The water channel protein aquaporin-5 (AQP5) is released into human saliva. Salivary AQP5 levels show a diurnal variation with the secretion of high levels during the waking hours. An age-related decrease in salivary AQP5 levels parallels a decrease in the volume of saliva. Cevimeline, a muscarinic acetylcholine ...

BACKGROUND Diagnostic value of whole saliva may be compromised when blood contamination is present in saliva samples. Measuring transferrin level in saliva samples has been used for detecting the level of blood contamination in saliva. The aim of this study was to investigate the validity of transferrin as a proper biomarker for blood contamination in whole saliva. METHODS Thirty younger (mea...

The study investigated the effects of type 2 diabetes mellitus on salivary flow and composition in humans compared to healthy sex and age matched controls. Forty adult human subjects divided into 20 diabetic and 20 non-diabetic healthy subjects were included. Saliva samples were collected and analysed for glucose, total protein, calcium, sodium, potassium, chloride and bicarbonate. Salivary flo...