• Rafaela Soares Rech, Fernando Neves Hugo, TôrresLuísa Helena do NascimentoLHDNhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-0740-2785Graduate Studies Program in Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Santa Maria, Brazil., and Juliana Balbinot Hilgert.
• Graduate Studies Program in Epidemiology, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.
• Gerodontology. 2019 Dec 1; 36 (4): 338-344.

ObjectiveThis study aimed to investigate characteristics associated with xerostomia and hyposalivation in older persons.BackgroundSaliva is one of the most important body fluids and plays an important role in food bolus formation, lubricating the oral mucosa and protecting teeth against demineralisation.Materials And MethodsThis is a cross-sectional study nested within a cohort and includes a sample of 872 older persons living independently in the community, both in rural and urban areas in Carlos Barbosa, Brazil. Data collection included standardised interviews to identify sociodemographic, behavioural and health-related variables, as well as oral clinical examination performed by two trained/calibrated dentists. Poisson regressions with robust variance were used to calculate the crude and adjusted prevalence ratios (PR) and their respective 95% confidence intervals.ResultsThe mean age was 68.5 ± 6.7 years, and the majority of the sample consisted of women (65.3%). The prevalence of xerostomia, of low stimulated salivary flow rate and low at rest salivary flow rate were 338 (38.8%), 494 (56.6%), 320 (36.7%), respectively. In the final adjusted model, women had a significantly increased prevalence of xerostomia (PR = 1.34; 95% CI: 1.12-1.61), as well as participants taking medication continuously (PR = 1.45; 95% CI: 1.16-1.82) and those with depressive symptoms (PR = 1.49; 95% CI: 1.27-1.76). Lower at rest (PR = 1.45, 95% CI: 1.22-1.72) and lower stimulated salivary flow were more prevalent in women (PR = 1.27, 95% CI: 1.11-1.44), while lower stimulated salivary flow was more prevalent in older persons taking medication continuously (PR = 1.24, 95% CI: 1.07-1.43).ConclusionSalivary hypofunction and xerostomia were more prevalent in women and in those with continuous medication use; however, depressive symptoms were associated only with xerostomia. Measures are required to promote oral comfort in cases of xerostomia, thereby reducing the unpleasant sensation of dry mouth and hyposalivation consequences in clinical practice.© 2019 Gerodontology Association and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

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