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Published on: May 4, 2018
Effects of gustatory stimulants of salivary secretion on salivary pH and flow: a randomized controlled trial
A D S P da Mata1, D N da Silva Marques, J M L Silveira
1Faculdade de Medicina, Dentária da Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal. admata2@yahoo.com
Objectives:
To compare salivary pH changes and stimulation efficacy of two different gustatory stimulants of salivary secretion (GSSS).
Setting:
Portuguese Dental Faculty Clinic.
Design:
Double blind randomized controlled trial.
Subjects:
One hundred and twenty volunteers were randomized to two intervention groups. Sample sized was calculated using an alpha error of 0.05 and a beta of 0.20.
Materials And Methods:
Participants were randomly assigned to receive a new gustatory stimulant of secretory secretion containing a weaker malic acid, fluoride and xylitol or a traditionally citric acid-based one. Saliva collection was obtained by established methods at different times. The salivary pH of the samples was determined with a pH meter and a microelectrode.
Main Outcome Measures:
Salivary pH variations and counts of subjects with pH below 5.5 for over 1 min and stimulated salivary flow were the main outcome measures.
Results:
Both GSSS significantly stimulated salivary output without significant differences between the two groups. The new gustatory stimulant of salivary secretion presented a risk reduction of 80 +/- 10.6% (95% CI) when compared with the traditional one.
Conclusions:
Gustatory stimulants of salivary secretion with fluoride, xylitol and lower acid content maintain similar salivary stimulation capacity while reducing significantly the dental erosion predictive potential.
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