ABSTRACT
Dry mouth or xerostomia is a major complaint of many elderly individuals especially in menopause. The exact mechanisms that mediate xerostomia have not been firmly established. The aim of this study was to investigate the serum cortisol level in menopausal women with dry mouth. A case-control study was carried out on 96 selected menopausal women aged 42 to 77 years with or without dry mouth [48 as case and 48 as control] conducted at the clinic of oral medicine, Tehran university of medical sciences. Serum concentration of cortisol was assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay [ELISA]. Statistical analysis of Student's unpaired t-test was used. The mean concentration of serum cortisol was significantly higher in the case group [109.2 +/- 5.5 ng/ml] compared to the control group [93.1 +/- 5.4 ng/ml] [P<0.05]. The results showed that subjects with dry mouth had an increased serum level of cortisol compared with those without this symptom, which suggests an association between cortisol and symptoms of oral dryness