Analysis of the concentration and output of whole salivary constituents in patients with Sjogren's syndrome

In Sjogren's syndrome, salivary glands are affected, resulting in a diminished salivary flow. In the present study, the protein composition, sialic acid content and the amounts of calcium and phosphate of stimulated whole saliva from 43 patients with Sjogren's syndrome, were compared with those of control saliva samples from 17 healthy subjects. The absolute concentrations of albumin, cystatin C, cystatin S, total IgA and total protein, but not amylase, were increased significantly in both primary and secondary Sjogren's syndrome. The output/min of total protein, albumin, amylase, and IgA was, however, decreased in Sjogren patients. These results suggest that the diminished output of salivary defence factors, rather than their absolute concentrations, may be related to the oral health problems seen in Sjogren's syndrome patients.