[Flow rate of minor salivary glands in elderly patients wearing complete dentures]

Minor salivary glands show diverse levels of secretion in different regions of the oral cavity. The smallest production can be measured at the palatal glands, the highest in the buccal and the lingual glands. The labial glands show an intermediate value between the palatal and the buccal flow rate. According to the literature, secretion of the minor salivary glands decreases with age, yet only few data are available regarding the influence of removable dentures on the flow rate. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of complete dentures on the palatal, the labial and the whole saliva flow rate on elderly patients. A further aim was to compare the results obtained by the two measuring methods (weighing method and the PERIOTRON method), used to determine the flow rates of the minor salivary glands. According to the results of this study neither whole resting saliva flow rate nor the flow rate of the minor salivary glands (palatal, buccal) was influenced by long term removable denture wearing (denture wearers and controls -- weighing method: palatal: right side 2.4 +/- 3.3 microl/min/cm2, left side 1 +/- 3.8 microl/min/cm2 and labial: 1.4 +/- 2.6 microl/min/cm2; controls: right side 3.7 +/- 5.2 microl/min/cm2, left side 1.4 +/- 2.5 microl/min/cm2 and labial 1.8 +/- 3.9 microl/min/cm whole resting saliva flow: 0.32 +/- 0.26 ml/min and 0.29 +/- 0.24 ml/min respectively) (The data of denture wearers and controls -- PERIOTRON method: palatal right side 4 +/- 4.6 microl/min/cm2, palatal left side 3.5 +/- 3.6 microl/min/cm2 and labial 0.9 +/- 0.6 microl/min/cm2; controls: palatal right side 2.2 +/- 3.1 microl/min/cm2, palatal left side 1.8 +/- 1.8 microl/min/cm2 and labial 1.9 +/- 3 microl/min/cm2). Authors could not show difference between the weighing method and the PERIOTRON method applied in the measurement of the saliva flow rate of the minor glands.