DOI: 10.36347/sajb.2017.v05i08.005

Pages: 574-584

Cholesterol, a crucial substance that performs innumerable vital functions in the body, has also been considered as a risk factor for various pathological states including atherosclerosis. Saliva cholesterol concentration reflects serum concentration to some extent. The objective of this study was to ascertain the diagnostic potential of saliva in the assessment of lipid profile as compared to that of serum lipid profile. A total number of 50 subjects were included in the study. The study group included 30 subjects with high risk for having higher serum lipid profile values with history of diabetes mellitus, hypertension or coronary heart disease and the control group included 20 age matched healthy subjects. The subjects selected randomly from the Department of Oral Medicine and Radiology, D.A.P.M R.V. Dental College and Hospital, Bangalore were subjected to a thorough general and oral examination which was recorded. The Lipid profile estimation, which included Total Cholesterol (TC), High Density Lipoprotein (HDL), Triglycerides (TG), Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL), Very Low Density Lipoprotein (VLDL) and ratio of Total Cholesterol with High Density Lipoprotein (TC/HDL), was done for the study group and control group subjects for serum and saliva. There was no significant difference in the saliva lipid profile values between the study group and the control group and also between the subjects in the risk groups and the control group. There was a good correlation between serum and saliva lipid profile values in the study group and the control group. The results of the present study showed that an increase in the serum lipid profile values leads to a corresponding increase in the saliva lipid profile values.