Salivary changes and dental erosion in bulimia nervosa

ObjectiveOur aim was to study if bulimia nervosa (BN) has an impact on salivary gland function and if such changes are related to dental erosion.Study designTwenty women with BN and twenty age- and gender-matched controls participated. Flow rate and composition of whole and glandular saliva, as well as feeling of oral dryness were measured. Dental erosion was measured on casts.ResultsCompared with control subjects, unstimulated whole saliva (UWS) flow rate was reduced in persons with BN, primarily owing to intake of medication (P = .007). No major compositional salivary changes were found. In the BN group, the dental erosion score was highest and complaints of oral dryness were more frequent.ConclusionsThe BN persons had impaired UWS, mainly owing to medication; increased feeling of oral dryness; and more dental erosion. Dental erosion was related to the duration of eating disorder, whereas no effect of vomiting frequency or intake of acidic drinks on reduced UWS was observed.