[Serum cortisol level in menopausal women with dry mouth]

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

Serum progesterone level in menopamal women with oral dryness

Dry mouth is a major complaint of many elderly individuals especially those who are in menopause period. Although the exact mechanisms that mediate xefastomia have not been firmly established, sex steroid hormones appear to play a considerable role in the physiology of the human oral cavity. The aim of this study was to investigate the serum progesterone level in menopausal women with oral dryness feeling. A case-control study was carried out on 70 selected menopausal women aged 42-78 years with or without dry mouth [35 case and 35 controls] conducted at the Oral Medicine Clinic of Tehran University of Medical Sciences. Serum concentration of progesterone was assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay [ELISA]. Statistical analysis using Spearman and Student's unpaired t-tests were used. The mean concentration of serum progesterone was significantly lower in cases [30 +/- 10 pg/ml] than in control group [171 +/- 70 pg/ml, P=0.026]. There was a negative correlation between serum progesterone concentration and severity of oral dryness feeling [r = -0.295; P< 0.05]. The results showed that subjects with dry mouth had decreased serum level of progesterone compared with those without dry mouth, which suggests an association of progesterone with symptoms of oral dryness

[Mercury concentration in unstimulated whole saliva in high school students in Tehran]

Mercury is a natural-occurring metallic substance. There are quantities of mercury found in air, water, soil, and all living matters. It is considered as one of the harmful metals to human being. Study of normal mercury content in human internal organs, blood, urine and saliva can be useful in assessing the level of environmental exposure. Such information may be useful and contributes to medico-legal expert opinions. The present study was conducted to determine the un-stimulated whole saliva mercury content in high school students in Tehran. This cross sectional study recruited 130 volunteer high school students [65 male, 65 female]. They were selected randomly from 5 different geographical sites in Tehran. All examinations conducted in this study were undertaken during the day from 9AM to 12PM, at least 2 hours after last intake of food and drink. By using spilling method, about 5CC of saliva was collected in a specially prepared test tube. Mercury was measured by Cold Vapor Atomic Absorption Spectrometry [CVAAS]. SPSS software and Man-Whitney U test were used for data analysis. The average student age was 16.5 and the average saliva mercury concentration was 0.17 micro g/dl, with 0.20 micro g/dl in males and 0.16 micro g/dl in females. No significant difference was detected between males and females saliva mercury levels. This study showed that a trace of mercury is detectable in saliva of people who have no amalgam fillings. Such information may be useful for relevant studies conducted in future

Immunohistochemistry analysis of P53 and Ki-67 proteins in oral lichen planus and normal oral mucosa

Oral lichen planus [OLP] is a relatively common chronic inflammatory muco-cutaneous disease classified among the potentially malignant lesions of oral mucosa. In this study we evaluated tissue expression of p53, ki-67 in OLP compared to normal oral mucosa. Specimens [formalin-fixed and paraffin- embedded] of 44 lesions of OLP and 30 controls referred to immunohistochemistry [IHC] analysis for p53 and ki-67. Results of immunohistochemistry were statistically evaluated by means of Kolmogorov- Smirnov, Kruskal- Wallis and t-test. The level of statistical significance was established at P< 0.05. This study included 44 patients with OLP [27 females and 17 males] and 30 subjects as control group [18 females and 12 males].The mean expression of p53 in patients with OLP was greater than subjects in control group. The mean expression of ki-67 in patients with OLP was more than people in control group. These differences were statistically significant [P=0.001]. Since p53 and ki-67 extensively accepted as important biomarkers in diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of malignant and premalignant lesions, therefore high degree of presence of these biomarkers in chronic premalignant lesion like OLP can be a great helpful in its prognosis and suggested treatments

[Correlation between serum and un-stimulated whole saliva c-erbB-2 concentrations in women with breast cancer]

Human saliva can be easily obtained by non-invasive techniques. It contains many analytes of interest for screening, diagnosis and monitoring of normal and abnormal conditions. The protein c-erbB-2, also known as Her2/neu, is a prognostic breast cancer marker in women diagnosed with malignant tumors. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between serum and saliva levels of c-erbB-2 in healthy women and untreated and treated patients with breast cancer. A case-control study design was used for this investigation. A total of forty two women were included in the study. Participants were matched for age and were divided into three equal groups. The collected specimens were evaluated for the expression of c-erbB-2 levels in serum and unstimulated whole saliva by ELISA technique. The ANOVA and Pearson Correlation were used for data analyses. Significant lower unstimulated salivary flow rate was observed in untreated cases in comparison with healthy women. However, no significant difference was detected in whole saliva output, as well as serum and saliva concentration of c-erbB-2 between the three groups. The correlation of c-erbB-2 between serum and saliva concentrations [r=0.02] and between serum concentration and saliva output [r=0.18] were not statistically significant. It seems that salivary and serum c-erbB-2 concentrations have no correlation in early stages of breast cancer and non-metastatic conditions

Immunohistochemical analysis of estrogen and progesterone receptor expression in gingival lesions

Some lesions in the oral cavity and mostly on gingiva have predominant predilection towards females, and mostly occur in the first four decades of life when changes in sex hormone levels in blood are obvious. The present study aimed to investigate the presence and distribution of estrogen and progesterone receptors in peripheral giant cell granuloma [PGCG], pyogenic granuloma [PG] and peripheral ossifying fibroma [POF] on gingiva as an organ target. In a descriptive case series study from March 2002 to April 2003, paraffin blocks from patients with exophitic lesion on gingiva, diagnosed by histopathology as PGCG, PG or POF at Dentistry Faculty of Tehran University of Medical Sciences [TUMS], Iran, were analyzed with Immunohistochemical [IHC] technique. The data analysis was performed by frequency and descriptive statistics. Of 35 patients, 12 estrogen receptors [ERS] and progesterone receptors [PRS] were detected. Nine of them were PRS and three were ERS. Two third of ERS/ PRS were seen in females and one third in males, respectively. In order of decreasing frequency the ERS and PRS were found in PG [n=6], POF [n=4] and PGCG [n=2]. In this study, ER/ PR were revealed in three lesions. PR was detected in all of three lesions but we could not see ER in PGCG. Thus, gingiva may be considered as a target organ for sex hormones