A Review of Selected Studies That Determine the Physical and Chemical Properties of Saliva in the Field of Dental Treatment

Abstract

Physiological whole saliva is a unique body fluid constantly washing the mucous membranes of the mouth, throat, and larynx. Saliva is a clear, slightly acidic mucinous-serous secretion, composed of various electrolytes, small organic substances, proteins, peptides, and polynucleotides. There are many ways to use saliva as a biological fluid (biofluid). The significant advantages of saliva as a unique diagnostic material are its availability and the noninvasive method of collection. The aim of this review is to emphasize the diagnostic value of saliva as a research material in the configuration of its structure and secretion disorders. The data were obtained using the MEDLINE (PubMed) search engine, as well as an additional manual search. The analysis covered 77 articles selected from a group of 1986 publications and initially qualified for devising. The results were evaluated and checked for the correctness of qualifying in accordance with inclusion and exclusion criteria. The diagnostic use of saliva has attracted the attention of many researchers due to its noninvasive nature and relative simplicity of collection. In addition, it should be noted that the determination of chemical and physical saliva parameters can be effectively performed in the patient's presence in the dental office.

Chair-side saliva parameters assessment and caries experience evaluation

“…The findings of this study are in line with recent publications [15,16,17], which show that saliva, as a biological fluid can have a protective role against dental caries. The assessment methods of saliva parameters are among the most easily accessible diagnostic tools.…”

“…"Saliva diagnosis can be performed in the laboratory or directly in the dental office. Not only does the examination of the properties of this systemic secretion include the contained substances and chemical parameters, but also physical properties are increasingly explored" [15]. Thus, if saliva tests are used in the dental office, they can be associated with other easily performed chair-side tests as a diagnostic and monitoring tool in many fields of science, such as medicine, dentistry, and pharmacotherapy" [15].…”

“…A patient should not eat at least 90 minutes before the collection and stop taking medicines that affect salivary secretion 1 day before the procedure. Before sampling, the mouth should be rinsed with deionised water, and saliva should be collected for 10 minutes" [15].…”

“…DMF-S ɛ [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21] 65 DMF-S =3 2.5 DMF-S =35 5 In the studied group [12] the mean DMF-S value was 18.39, under a normal distribution. According to International Caries Assessment and Detection System examination, half of patients included in this study had no active cavities.…”

Studies regarding salivary total antioxidant activity in different types of orthodontic treatement

“…Newly emerging and fastgrowing technologies, such as the latest point systems, RNA sequencing, and fluid biopsy can provide new diagnostic solutions (KUBALA & al. [12]).…”