Saliva tests that controversial

Denver, diagnosis to determine the patient's disease is usually carried out diagnostic tests most often used is the blood. Now the medical as well start using the test with saliva (saliva) to detect the disease, but this test is still questionable validity.

Saliva test is more representative claimed the large number of hormones so it is appropriate to know the condition of a person hormone. But the weakness sometimes need to test a few times because people have hormone levels fluctuate.

For example, when approaching the menopause, women will experience a variety of symptoms due to a decrease in estrogen levels.

Whereas in men experience andropause condition of testosterone deficiency are accompanied by fatigue, loss of muscle mass and decreased bone density.

Now, to determine the appropriate treatment with the hormone condition like that can do the saliva test. This test can determine the sex hormones such as what are decreased and help doctors determine the type and dose to replace the hormones that decrease.

This saliva test can be done at home by putting them in a container and sent to the laboratory. But sometimes one must take a sample of several days or several times a day, this is because hormone levels can vary at certain times.

"Still not enough studies conducted to determine the meaning of these saliva tests. The concept itself was not defective but has not worked well for him approached the invalid," Nanette said Santoro, chairman of the obstetric and gynecology at the University of Colorado at Denver, as quoted from the Wall Street Journal, Wednesday (06.02.2010).

Some experts said these tests provide a better representative to measure hormone levels compared with blood tests. Because hormones into saliva through the blood vessels near the salivary glands.

Doctors usually treat hormone deficiency using low dose of hormones to prevent delinquency and improve symptoms.

A arrtikel Clinical Chemistry in 2008 concluded that the saliva test has proven to be reliable for some purposes such as diagnosis of Cushing's syndrome or disorder that is too high cortisol.

But biologists at the University of Erlangen-Nornberg, Germany Michael Groschl doubt this saliva test results. He thinks more study is needed to make this test to be a reliable way of diagnosis.

"We need to standardize the way, as well as diagnose with a blood sample. Because different methods may give different results although originating from the same sample," said Dr. Groschl.

Yet some experts have used this method for the diagnosis of certain conditions, although still a controversy about standardization.