Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Sep-Dec;25(3):437-440.
doi: 10.4103/jomfp.jomfp_199_21. Epub 2022 Jan 11.

The Role of Salivary Lactate Levels in assessing the Severity of Septic Shock

D K Shruthi  1 , Shivakumar M Channabasappa  2 , K M Mithun  1 , B S Suresh  3 , Anand S Tegginamani  4 , T Smitha  5
Affiliations

The Role of Salivary Lactate Levels in assessing the Severity of Septic Shock

D K Shruthi et al. J Oral Maxillofac Pathol. 2021 Sep-Dec.

Abstract

Background: Sepsis is a major worldwide cause of morbidity and mortality. Hence, rapid and reliable diagnosis is essential. Emergency departments use a standard measure of sepsis, based upon an elevated Lactate level in blood. Saliva is more readily available and easier to obtain than blood samples, and is increasingly being studied as a new source of diagnostic information.

Aim: This study aimed to evaluate whether analysis of Lactate levels in saliva can substitute for that of Lactate levels in blood.

Methods/materials: We processed saliva samples and serum samples from septic shock and non-septic shock patients. We found out Lactate levels in both the group. We plotted the concentration of Lactate in non-septic and septic patients and compared lactate levels in saliva to its levels in blood.Statistical analysis: Results were statistically analyzed by independent sample t test and A Spearman rho correlation.

Results: We found increased serum and salivary Lactate levels in all cases of sepsis compared to the control group. Notably, the increase in Lactate levels was higher in serum as compared to saliva in septic patients, suggesting saliva may not serve as a better indicator of sepsis compared to blood. Salivary lactate was more in septic shock patients compared to non-septic shock patients.

Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first study to compare lactic acid levels in serum and saliva in cases of sepsis. The increase in serum lactate in patients with sepsis is evident when compared to increase in salivary lactate, so serum lactate level would be easier for physicians to differentiate septic patients from non-septic patients. Salivary lactate may not serve as better indicator in septic shock patients.

Keywords: Saliva lactate; septic shock; serum lactate.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

There are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Histogram of salivary lactate levels in septic shock patients. Data are mean ± standard error of the mean
Figure 2
Figure 2
Histogram of salivary lactate levels in nonseptic shock patients. Data are mean ± standard error of the mean
Figure 3
Figure 3
A graph showing weak correlation between blood lactate levels and salivary lactate levels
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Puskarich MA, Jones AE. Shock. In: Walls RM, Hockberger RS, Gausche-Hill M, editors. Rosen's Emergency Medicine: Concepts and Clinical Practice. 9th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2018.
    1. Wacharasint P, Nakada TA, Boyd JH, Russell JA, Walley KR. Normal-range blood lactate concentration in septic shock is prognostic and predictive. Shock. 2012;38:4–10. - PubMed
    1. [Last accessed on 2021 03]. Available from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Septic_shock .
    1. Schnur MB. Elevated Lactate – Not Just a Marker for Sepsis and Septic Shock. Nursing Center Blog. [Last accessed on 2021 Jun 04]. Available from: https://www.nursingcenter.com/ncblog/march-2017/elevated-lactate-%E2%80%... .
    1. Emmett M, Szerlip H. Causes of Lactic Acidosis. Upto Date. [Last accessed on 2021 Jun 04]. Available from: https://www.nursingcenter.com/ncblog/march-2017/elevatedlactate-%E2%80%9... .