Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-m6dg7 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-19T17:44:44.063Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Usefulness of Saliva Lithium Estimation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 January 2018

Abraham Verghese ,
N. Indrani ,
K. Kuruvilla  and
Peter G. Hill
Abraham Verghese
Affiliation:
Christian Medical College, Vellore, India
N. Indrani
Affiliation:
Christian Medical College, Vellore, India
K. Kuruvilla
Affiliation:
Christian Medical College, Vellore, India
Peter G. Hill
Affiliation:
Christian Medical College, Vellore, India
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

Estimation of lithium in 24 samples of serum and saliva show that there is a very high correlation between the lithium levels in serum and saliva (r= +0·88). The ratio found in our patients is very similar to that reported from North America. Estimation of lithium in saliva at different periods of time show there is a good degree of stability for saliva lithium levels. Thus saliva can be used as a substitute for serum for lithium monitoring. The practical advantages of this are discussed.

Type
Research Article
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 130 , Issue 2 , February 1977 , pp. 148 - 150
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists 1977 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Angst, J. & Weis, P. (1970) Lithium prophylaxis in recurrent affective disorders. British Journal of Psychiatry, 116, 604–14.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Baastrup, P. (1964) The use of lithium in manic-depressive psychosis. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 5, 396–408.Google Scholar
Baastrup, P. (1970) Prophylactic lithium: double blind discontinuation in manic depressive and recurrent depressive disorders. Lancet, ii, 326–30.Google Scholar
Brown, P. B. & Leo, E. F. (1970) The estimation of lithium in serum. Annals of Clinical Biochemistry, 7, 13–15.Google Scholar
Coppen, A., Noguera, R., Bailey, J., Burns, B. H., Swani, M. S., Hare, E. H., Gardner, R. & Maggs, R. (1971) Prophylactic lithium in affective disorder. Lancet, ii, 375–9.Google Scholar
Gershon, S. (1968) The use of lithium salts in psychiatric disorders. Diseases of the Nervous System, 29, 51–5.Google Scholar
Hullin, R. P., McDonald, R. & Allsopp, M. N. E. (1972) Prophylactic lithium in recurrent affective disorders. Lancet, i, 1044–6.Google Scholar
Mendels, J., Secunda, S. K. & Dyson, W. L. (1972) A controlled study of the antidepressant effects of lithium carbonate. Archives of General Psychiatry, 26, 154–7.Google Scholar
Neu, C., Dimascio, A. & Williams, D. (1975) Saliva lithium levels: clinical applications. American Journal of Psychiatry, 132, 66–8.Google Scholar
Shopsin, B., Gershon, S. & Pinckney, L. (1969) The secretion of lithium in human mixed saliva; effects of ingested lithium on electrolyte distribution in saliva and serum. International Pharmaco-psychiatry, 2, 148–69.Google Scholar
Spring, K. R. & Spirtes, M. A. (1969) Salivary excretion of lithium: human parotid and submaxillary secretions. Journal of Dental Research, 48, 546–9.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Submit a response

eLetters

No eLetters have been published for this article.