VARIATIONS IN FIBRINOLYTIC-ACTIVITY OF HUMAN WHOLE SALIVA

The physiological variations of fibrinolytic activity (FA) in saliva w ere investigated in a population of 149 healthy volunteers including 1 2 pregnant women. An increase in FA could be observed with increasing age. Marked variations were observed during daytime with a peak value early in the morning. Higher FA values were observed in males as compa red with females in the 20-39 yr age group. A clear decrease in FA was observed during pregnancy. A significant correlation existed between FA and sus pended epithelial cell concentration, which seemed responsi ble for most of the physiological FA variations. It was concluded that age, sex, pregnancy, and the time of the day are important for saliva ry FA and should be taken into account in any study on salivary FA rel ated to physiological or pathological processes.