TABLE 3.
Association between dental caries and salivary characteristics.
| SALIVARY CHARACTERISTIC | CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS (9–17 YEARS OLD) | ADULTS (18–64 YEARS OLD) | OLDER ADULTS (≥ 65 YEARS OLD) | OVERALL | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| ||||||||
| Crude RR* (95% CI†) | Adjusted RR (95% CI)‡ | Crude RR (95% CI) | Adjusted RR (95% CI) | Crude RR (95% CI) | Adjusted RR (95% CI) | Crude RR (95% CI) | Adjusted RR (95% CI) | |
|
| ||||||||
| Salivary Consistency Thick, | 0.5 (0.2–1.6) | 0.8 (0.3–2.4) | 0.7 (0.4–1.2) | 0.6§ (0.4–1.0) | 1.9§ (1.0–3.5) | 1.8 (0.9–3.6) | 1.0 (0.7–1.6) | 1.0 (0.6–1.5) |
| Sticky or Frothy | ||||||||
|
| ||||||||
| Resting Salivary Flow Rate (Reference: ≤ 60 Seconds) | ||||||||
| > 60 to < 90 seconds | 1.4 (0.5–4.3) | 1.0 (0.3–3.2) | 1.2 (0.6–2.2) | 1.2 (0.7–2.1) | 1.0 (0.6–1.8) | 1.2 (0.7–2.0) | 1.2 (0.8–1.9) | 1.2 (0.8–1.8) |
| ≥ 90 seconds | 0.4 (0.1–1.3) | 0.3 (0.1–1.2) | 0.9 (0.6–1.2) | 0.9 (0.6–1.2) | 0.9 (0.6–1.4) | 0.9 (0.6–1.3) | 0.9 (0.7–1.2) | 0.8 (0.6–1.1) |
|
| ||||||||
| Stimulated Salivary Flow Rate | ||||||||
| (Reference: ≥ 1.0 mL¶/Minute) | ||||||||
| = 0.6 mL/minute | 1.1 (0.7–1.8) | 1.2 (0.7–2.0) | 1.0 (0.7–1.5) | 0.8 (0.5–1.2) | 2.7# (1.6–4.6) | 2.4# (1.5–3.8) | 1.3 (1.0–1.8) | 1.2 (0.8–1.6) |
| > 0.6 to < 1.0 mL/minute | 0.9 (0.4–2.4) | 1.6 (0.6–4.1) | 1.0 (0.8–1.4) | 0.9 (0.7–1.3) | 1.5 (1.0–2.2) | 1.4 (0.9–2.2) | 1.1 (0.8–1.4) | 1.0 (0.8–1.4) |
|
| ||||||||
| Resting Salivary pH (Reference: ≥ 6.4) | ||||||||
| ≤ 6.0 | 0.3§ (0.1–1.0) | 0.3 (0.1–1.6) | 1.5 (1.0–2.4) | 1.4 (0.9–2.2) | 2.0** (1.2–3.4) | 1.7 (1.0–2.7) | 1.6§ (1.1–2.4) | 1.6§ (1.1–2.2) |
| > 6.0 to < 6.4 | 2.5 (0.9–6.5) | 1.3 (0.5–3.2) | 0.9 (0.6–1.3) | 0.9 (0.7–1.4) | 1.2 (0.7–1.9) | 1.0 (0.6–1.8) | 1.1 (0.8–1.5) | 1.1 (0.8–1.4) |
|
| ||||||||
| Stimulated Salivary pH (Reference: ≥ 7.6) | ||||||||
| ≤ 7.0 | 1.0 (0.5–2.0) | 0.7 (0.4–1.5) | 1.1 (0.7–1.7) | 1.0 (0.7–1.5) | 1.4 (0.7–2.9) | 1.2 (0.6–2.4) | 1.2 (0.8–1.8) | 1.1 (0.7–1.6) |
| > 7.0 to < 7.6 | 1.3 (0.6–2.6) | 1.7 (1.0–2.9) | 1.0 (0.7–1.4) | 1.0 (0.7–1.4) | 0.8 (0.5–1.4) | 0.6§ (0.4–1.0) | 1.1 (0.8–1.4) | 1.0 (0.7–1.3) |
|
| ||||||||
| Salivary Buffering Capacity†† (Reference: 6–12) | ||||||||
| 0–3 (low) | 0.3** (0.1–0.7) | 0.3** (0.1–0.7) | 1.7§ (1.1–2.8) | 1.5 (1.0–2.5) | 1.4 (0.8–2.4) | 1.1 (0.8–1.7) | 1.5 (1.0–2.1) | 1.3 (0.9–2.0) |
| 4–5 (moderate) | 1.1 (0.5–2.0) | 1.0 (0.4–2.4) | 1.1 (0.8–1.4) | 1.0 (0.7–1.3) | 0.7 (0.4–1.2) | 0.7 (0.4–1.1) | 1.0 (0.8–1.3) | 1.0 (0.7–1.3) |
†
CI: Confidence interval.
‡
Adjusted for age, sex, race, income, education, alcohol consumption, smoking status, medication affecting saliva, acidic beverage intake, fluoride toothbrushing, heavy plaque and number of teeth present.
§
P < .05.
¶
mL: Milliliter.
#
P < .001.
**
P < .01.
††
Buffering capacity determined by adding the values assigned to each color, according to the manufacturer’s instructions: green, 4; blue/green, 3; blue, 2; blue/red, 1; and red, 0