Salivary Changes, Systemic Conditions, and Medication Use in Independently-Living Aged: A Cross-Sectional Study

Objective: To determine the unstimulated salivary flow, pH, and buffering capacity and their associations with systemic conditions and medication use in independently living aged. Material and Methods: This cross-sectional study included 72 participants with a minimum of 60 years recruited in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. A questionnaire was used to collect age, sex, presence of systemic diseases, and medications in continuous use. Salivary data collection was performed to determine unstimulated salivary flow, pH, and buffering capacity. Descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate analyses were performed (p<0.05). Results: Most of the sample had at least one systemic disease (81.9%) and used at least one medication (79.2%). Female participants (p=0.01), those with five or more systemic diseases (p<0.01), and hypertension (p=0.04) had reduced salivary flow. Participants with systemic diseases (p=0.02), taking any medication (p=0.04), in a polypharmacy regimen, and presenting hypertension (p=0.02) had more acidic salivary pH. Participants with diabetes had average salivary buffering capacity (p=0.02). In the adjusted multiple regression models, no explanatory variable was significantly associated with the salivary outcomes. Conclusion: Systemic alterations and medication use appear to be related to salivary changes in older adults. Integrative assessment of older adults is fundamental to identifying and controlling the factors that may modify their salivary characteristics.