Salivary concentration of mmp-9 in comparison with the tissue expression in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCCs) is one of the most prevalent types of all oral neoplasms that highly require early diagnosis. Salivary evaluation is non-invasive, simple, and rapid.The aim of the current study was to investigate the relationship between salivary MMP-9 concentration and its tissue expression in patients with OSCC.Materials and Methods: Saliva samples were collected from 24 patients with primary diagnosis of OSCC and 24 healthy age-and-gender- matched. The unstipulated saliva was collected with spitting method. After saliva collection, the tissue samples were obtained by biopsy. Salivary concentration and tissue expression of MMP-9 were evaluated using ELISA and immune histochemistry assays, respectively. Data were analyzed using t-test, chi-square, and ANOVA tests with the confidence interval of 95%. Results: A significant increase in salivary concentration of MMP-9 was evident in OSCC patients in comparison to healthy individuals (P-value < 0.05).In addition, the MMP-9 salivary concentration was significantly higher in males in comparison with females (P-value < 0.05). There was a positive and significant correlation between salivary concentration of MMP-9 and its tissue expression (Pearson Correlation = 0.669, P-value< 0.05). Conclusion: Salivary evaluation of MMP-9 concentration could be a valuable tool to detect OSCC.