title: Salivary diagnostics and its impact in dentistry, research, education, and the professional community.
abstract: Oral fluid-based (salivary) tests have the potential to create practical, point-of-care clinical instruments that are convenient, practical, and comfortable to use in dentistry and medicine. Currently, there are no simple, accurate, and inexpensive sampling, screening, or detection methods to support definitive diagnostic platforms across dental and medical disciplines. Though the benefits from advancing screening and detection technologies seem eminent, analytical, chemical, molecular, genetic, and protein markers are still under development. Clinical applications in patient care must be validated independently to ensure that they are clinically accurate, reliable, precise, and uniformly consistent for screening and detecting specific diseases or conditions. As technology designed to improve patient care through risk assessment, prevention, and disease management is transferred into clinical practice, dentistry may need to reassess its role in general health care.
authors.affiliation: Center for Craniofacial Molecular Biology, The Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, University of Southern California, 2250 Alcazar Street, CSA 103 HSC-MC 9062, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA.
authors.forename: H C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Slavkin
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Fox
authors.forename: D M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Meyer
mesh_terms: D000571:American Dental Association; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis; D001709:Biotechnology; D018865:Dental Research / Q000458:organization & administration; D003813:Dentistry; D003945:Diagnosis, Oral / Q000379:methods*; D004497:Education, Dental; D018961:Educational Technology; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods; D012463:Saliva / Q000737:chemistry*; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers