Effect of xerostomic medications on stimulated salivary flow rate in patients with Sjogren's syndrome

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of xerostomi c medications on the salivary output of patients with Sjogren's syndrome. M ethod and materials: Of 62 patients evaluated in this study, 23 were not us ing medication, and 39 were using between 1 and 6 medications with xerostom ic side effect. Results: The mean +/- SEM stimulated parotid output was 0.3 3 +/- 0.07 mL/min per gland for patients who were not using medication and 0.33 +/- 0.04 mL/min per gland for patients using (1 to 6) medications, Ana lyses did not reveal a significant difference in salivary output between th ese groups. The salivary output of patients using various numbers of medica tions (1 or 2; 3 or 4; 5 or 6) was also compared, Analysis revealed no sign ificant difference in salivary output related to the number of xerostomic m edications used. Conclusion: The use of xerostomic medications may not nece ssarily affect stimulated parotid flow rate in patients with Sjogren's synd rome. These results suggested that gustatory stimulation may be adequate to overcome the inhibitory effect induced by xerostomic medications.