title: Characteristic changes of saliva and taste in burning mouth syndrome patients.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Burning mouth syndrome (BMS) is characterized by chronic pain with a burning sensation of the tongue and oral mucosa and reported to be often accompanied by subjective xerostomia and dysgeusia. Since the etiology of BMS has not been elucidated, to understand the characteristics of BMS, we measured some components of saliva and taste sensitivity and compared the measured values between BMS and healthy subjects.
  
  
  METHODS
  Unstimulated saliva was collected from 15 female BMS patients and 30 healthy women. The flow rate, viscosity (spinnability) and concentration of secretory IgA (SIgA) of saliva and serum antioxidant capacity were measured. The recognition thresholds for sweet, salty, sour, bitter, and umami tastes were measured by whole-mouth method. The statistical analyses were performed using Student's t-test, and P < 0.05 was considered to be significant.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In BMS group, the flow rate of saliva was significantly lower and the spinnability was significantly higher compared with healthy group. The secreted amount of SIgA per min and serum antioxidant capacity was significantly lower in the patients. The threshold for sourness in patients was significantly higher, while those for other tastes did not differ from healthy group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  BMS patients showed lower salivary flow and higher salivary spinnability. These results together with decreased SIgA amount, suggest that BMS may be relevant to the deterioration of salivary condition, which could in turn affect taste function. Furthermore, the lower antioxidant capacity in patient's serum suggests that it can serve as a diagnostic tool for BMS.
authors: Department of Orofacial Pain Management, Graduate school of Medical and Dental Sciences, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo, Japan.
authors: Hiroko
authors: H
authors: Imura
authors: Department of Orofacial Pain Management, Graduate school of Medical and Dental Sciences, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo, Japan.
authors: Masahiko
authors: M
authors: Shimada
authors: Department of Orofacial Pain Management, Graduate school of Medical and Dental Sciences, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo, Japan.
authors: Yoko
authors: Y
authors: Yamazaki
authors: Department of Basic Oral Health Engineering, Track of Medical and Dental Science and Technology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo, Japan.
authors: Kumiko
authors: K
authors: Sugimoto
mesh_terms: D000975:Antioxidants / Q000378:metabolism; D002054:Burning Mouth Syndrome / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D059350:Chronic Pain; D004408:Dysgeusia / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007071:Immunoglobulin A, Secretory / Q000378:metabolism; D008875:Middle Aged; D012463:Saliva / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D012472:Salivation / Q000502:physiology; D012636:Secretory Rate; D013649:Taste / Q000502:physiology*; D013651:Taste Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology; D013652:Taste Threshold / Q000502:physiology; D014987:Xerostomia / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D007071:Immunoglobulin A, Secretory
keywords: Secretory IgA; antioxidant capacity; burning mouth syndrome; saliva; taste