Host-derived salivary biomarkers in diagnosing periodontal disease: systematic review and meta-analysis

To systematically evaluate the accuracy of host-derived salivary biomarkers in the diagnosis of periodontal disease based on the given sensitivity and specificity information.

Studies were eligible for inclusion if they had compared the diagnostic application of salivary biomarkers with clinical examination of periodontal disease. A detailed search was performed in five databases without restrictions on subject age, chronology, or language. Additionally, a partial grey-literature search was conducted. The revised Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies tool and Meta-analysis were used to evaluate the selected studies.

From the 905 screened studies, four were included in the qualitative and quantitative analysis. One biomarker, macrophage inflammatory protein-1α (MIP-1α), had excellent diagnostic accuracy and two, interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and interleukin-6 (IL-6), showed acceptable diagnostic values. However, the only biomarker considered excellent was evaluated in a single study, which may reduce the robustness of the results.

There is currently limited evidence to confirm the diagnostic capability of salivary biomarkers in the clinical assessment of periodontal disease. Notwithstanding, the summary findings showed the growing importance of salivary biomarker, and can guide larger, well-controlled, diagnostic accuracy studies. Likewise, although not conclusive, MIP-1α, IL-1β, and IL-6 may be promising biomarkers for future studies.