Salivary calcium in postmenopausal women and prevalence of dental caries: A cross sectional study

Abstract

Introduction and Aim: Hormonal variations in postmenopausal women may cause growth and development of the oral epithelium, especially in response to estrogen levels. One of the manifestations of this issue is xerostomia or dryness of the mouth. Saliva provides a first line of defence against diseases like caries by maintaining the pH levels. However, estrogen levels have been shown to directly affect the salivary flow rate. Materials and Methods: The current study focuses on the estimation of salivary calcium levels in postmenopausal women and its association with the prevalence of dental caries. Informed consent was obtained from study subjects and they were categorized into case and control based on DMFT index (Decay, filled, missing) WHO criteria 2013.Post menopausal women with caries were categorized has case(n=40) and women who have not attained menopause free of caries were categorized has control (n=40). Unstimulated salivary samples were collected by Navazesh protocol and the salivary calcium levels were estimated by ARSENAZO method. Results: The average calcium levels in saliva were found to be 1.84± 0.30 and 1.67± 0.32 for case group and control group respectively. The mean decayed, missing due to caries, and filled teeth (DMFT) score was observed to be 10.45± 3.81 and 1.80± 0.341 for case group and control group respectively. Conclusion: According to the findings, postmenopausal women need to be administered enough calcium supplements in order to maintain good dental hygiene and thus improve lifestyle.