Correlation of trace elements in saliva with dental caries activity

Saliva is the first line of defence against caries. Hence it is very important to understand the physiochemical nature of saliva so as to use its beneficial effect to combat dental caries. The saliva contains a lot of organic and inorganic substances, but in addition to this there are trace elements. The present study is concentrated on the trace elements zinc and copper present in saliva and the correlation of these elements with dental caries activity. The study included 30 individuals; 15 with low caries activity and 15 with high caries activity. Every patient was screened and unstimulated saliva was collected. The samples were centrifuged and the supernatant fluid was subjected to atomic absorption spectrometry. The results from the experiment revealed that the amount of copper and zinc in saliva of low caries individuals was higher than the high carious individuals. When the data was subjected to statistical analysis it was evident that zinc had a high significant value whereas copper was not so significant. Hence it is concluded that copper and zinc has negative correlation on dental caries, but only zinc has a significant effect.