Salivary content might be associated with skeletal status in postmenopausal women: SilesiaOsteoActive Study results.: Salivary investigations versus bone status

Abstract The aim of the study was to investigate whether salivary mineral content may be associated with bone status in women after menopause. Material and Methods The study group consisted of 125 postmenopausal women aged 64.3 ± 6.9 years, derived from the epidemiological SilesiaOsteoActive Study. All participants underwent hip and spine bone densitometry using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), dental examination, and saliva content analysis. Data for salivary pH, copper, calcium, phosphorus and zinc concentrations were evaluated. Results Mean femoral neck bone mineral density (BMD) was 0.739 ± 0.118 g/cm2, total hip BMD 0.891 ± 0.14 g/cm2 and spine BMD 0.868 ± 0.14 g/cm2. Salivary pH was significantly lower in women with spinal osteoporosis defined as T-score below -2.5, compared to individuals with normal BMD (pH: 6.65 ± 0.67 vs 6.96 ± 0.58, p Conclusion High salivary calcium content and low salivary pH may be indicative of low hip and decreased spine bone mineral density, respectively. These associations may reflect demineralization process (calcium redistribution) influencing bone, and a negative effect of acidity on mineral tissues, although causal pathway remains not clear.