Citation

Out D, Hall RJ, Granger DA, Page GG, Woods SJ. Brain Behav. Immun. 2012; 26(4): 543-551.

Affiliation

Center for Interdisciplinary Salivary Bioscience Research, School of Nursing, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States; Centre for Child and Family Studies, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2012, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.bbi.2012.01.019

PMID

22326517

PMCID

PMC3334360

Abstract

This study evaluated individual differences in levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) measured in saliva, cross-sectionally and prospectively, in relation to systemic inflammation and risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Plasma and saliva samples, later assayed for CRP, were collected multiple times from an ethnically diverse group of women seeking help from domestic violence crisis shelters-agencies (N=107; mean age at study start=34years). Plasma and saliva CRP levels were moderately associated cross-sectionally and across two years. There were indications that saliva CRP levels were, on average, higher in the morning than evening. Higher levels of saliva and plasma CRP were associated with a higher body mass index, but did not differ between women who did and did not smoke. Salivary CRP reliably discriminated between high and low levels of plasma CRP, using a clinically relevant cutoff point of 3mg/L, recommended by the American Heart Association. Results build upon an emerging literature suggesting that under specific conditions levels of CRP in saliva may reflect low-grade inflammation and have the potential to serve as a screen for CVD risk status.

Language: en