Methods: From original sample of 1676 individuals, 99 subjects (60±3 years) were followed from 1985 to 2009, when paraffin-wax stimulated saliva samples were taken for microbiological and biochemical analyses. The patients oral health and medical records were available. Immunoturbimetry (Tina-Quant®, Roche) was used for albumin analysis. Subjects with albumin values below and higher than median were compared using group statistics. The effect of various background variables on albumin values was analyzed using logistic regression model.
Results: The statistically significant oral health parameters in patients with lower vs. higher than median albumin concentrations were periodontal probing depth (2.6±0.5mm vs. 3.9±0.8mm; p<0.01) an attachment level (3.1± 0.5 vs. 3.4± 0.9; p<0.05), respectively. Logistic regression showed that high sali-vary albumin concentration was explained by high salivary IgG (odds ratio [OR]1.416; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.173;1.709) and by infection by Porphyromonas gingvalis (OR 7.091, CI 1.645;30.571). Age, gender, systemic diseases, drugs used daily, smoking, prevalence of other periodontal disease in-dicator bacteria and Candida, however, did not associate with high salivary albumin concentrations.
Conclusion: Our study hypothesis was partly confirmed by showing high salivary albumin concentra-tions particularly in patients with long-term periodontal disease and infection with the periodontal pathogen P. gingivalis. However, the other background factors investigated did not seem to affect the concentrations. Supported by The Finnish Medical Society.