Prevalence of blood contamination in adult saliva and quantitative measurement of salivary hemoglobin level by using an anti-human hemoglobin monoclonal antibody

Hidenori Yamada, DDS, PhD (1), Ayako Okada, DDS, PhD (1), Takatoshi Murata, DDS, PhD (1), Kimiyuki Uetani, DDS (2), Mami Kotoh, DDS, PhD (2), Naoyuki Nishitsuji, DDS (2), Yoshihide Yabuki, DDS (2), Yoichi Fukuzawa, DDS, PhD (2), Hirokazu Yoshino, DDS (2), Koshi Kubo, DDS (2), Mitsuhiro Abe, DDS, PhD (2), Takatoshi One, DDS, PhD (2), Hiroaki Nagai, DDS, PhD (2), Masataka Yajima, DDS (2), Yoshiaki Nomura, DDS, PhD (1), and Nobuhiro Hanada, DDS, PhD (1)

(1) Department of Translational Research, Tsurumi University School of Dental Medicine, Yokohama, and (2) Minato-ku Shiba Dental Association, Tokyo, Japan



Purpose: Blood contamination in saliva is more common in individuals with periodontal destruction. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of salivary hemoglobin and periodontal pathogens in Japanese adults.
Materials and Methods: The study participants were 249 subjects older than 20 years who participated in an oral health promotion festival organized by the Tokyo Minato-ku Shiba Dental Association. We collected 249 saliva specimens from the 249 subjects in the middle of Tokyo, Japan. For bacterial detection, 24 specimens were selected. Porphyromonas gingivalis and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans were detected in 24 specimens by using polymerase chain reaction.
Results: The salivary human hemoglobin (hHb) levels in 94 subjects (37.8%) were lower than the detectable level (<1 μg/mL). The remaining 155 subjects (62.2%) were suspected of having periodontal disease. If we adopt a cutoff hHb level of 2.0 μg/mL, 101 subjects (40.6%) would be positive for periodontal disease. Of the 24 saliva specimens, 21 (87.5%) and 3 (12.5%) tested positive for P. gingivalis and A. actinomycetemcomitans, respectively.
Conclusion: Our data indicate that screening tests for blood contamination in adult saliva were useful for oral and general health.
(Asian Pac J Dent 2016; 16: 9-13.)
Key Words: anti-human hemoglobin monoclonal antibody, hemoglobin, periodontal disease, saliva