Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37526792›Full record

SynthesisOdontology2024

Salivary elemental signature of dental caries: a systematic review and meta-analysis of ionomics studies.

Abdullah Ali Alqahtani, Feras Alhalabi, Mohammad Khursheed Alam

Abstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Odontology, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

7 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Sex-Specific Salivary Biochemical Composition in a Healthy Population.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026
    Article
  3. The intra-oral variation of salivary ions.Clinical oral investigations · 2025
    Article
  4. Review
  5. Article
  6. Review
  7. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Abdullah Ali AlqahtaniDepartment of Conservative Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, 11942, Alkharj, Saudi Arabia. aa.alqahtani@psau.edu.sa.
Feras AlhalabiDepartment of Conservative Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, 11942, Alkharj, Saudi Arabia.
Mohammad Khursheed AlamOrthodontics, Department of Preventive Dental Science, College of Dentistry, Jouf University, Sakaka, Saudi Arabia.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Trace- and macro-chemical elements are crucial for cellular physiological functioning, and their alterations in biological fluids might be associated with an underlying pathological state. Hence, this study aimed to examine and summarize the published literature concerning the application of salivary ionomics for caries diagnosis. An extensive search of studies was conducted using PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Scopus, without any language and year restriction for answering the following PECO question: "In subjects (i.e., children, adolescents, or adults) with good systematic health, are there any variations in the salivary concentrations of trace- or macro-elements between caries-free (CF) individuals and caries-active (CA) subjects?" A modified version of the QUADOMICS tool was used to assess the quality of the included studies. The Review Manager Version 5.4.1. was used for data analyses. The analysis of salivary chemical elements that significantly differed between CF and CA subjects was also performed. Thirty-four studies were included, involving 2299 CA and 1669 CF subjects, having an age range from 3 to 64 years in over 16 countries. The meta-analysis revealed a statistically significant difference (p < 0.05) in the salivary levels of calcium, phosphorus, chloride, magnesium, potassium, sodium, and zinc between CA and CF subjects, suggesting higher levels of calcium, phosphorus, potassium, and sodium in CF subjects while higher levels of chloride, magnesium, and zinc in CA patients. Half of the included studies (17/34) were considered high quality, while the remaining half were considered medium quality. Only zinc and chloride ions were found to be higher significantly and consistent in CF and CA subjects, respectively. Conflicting outcomes were observed for all other salivary chemical elements including aluminum, bromine, calcium, copper, fluoride, iron, potassium, magnesium, manganese, sodium, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, phosphorus, lead, selenium, and sulfate ions.

Indexed as

Dental CariesSalivaAdolescentAdultCalciumChildChild, PreschoolHumansIonsMagnesiumMagnesium ChlorideMiddle AgedPhosphorusPotassiumSodiumYoung AdultCalciumIonsMagnesiumMagnesium ChloridePhosphorusPotassiumSodiumZincBiomarkersDental cariesDiagnosisIonomics

Identifiers

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.