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Table 1 Median saliva flow rates, MUC5B and total protein levels 12 months after RT in patients with and without severe xerostomia during daytime and/or nighttime

From: MUC5B levels in submandibular gland saliva of patients treated with radiotherapy for head-and-neck cancer: A pilot study

  

No/mild xerostomia

Severe xerostomia

 p 

(n = 12)

(n = 17)

SMG flow rate

ml/10 min

0.69

0.80

0.66

WS flow rate (PG + SMG)

ml/10 min

3.35

2.80

0.82

MUC5B concentration

U

0.14

0.01

0.22

Undetectable MUC5B *

%

25

47

0.27

MUC5B x flow rate †

μg/10 min

15.0

1.3

0.37

Total protein

mg/ml

0.87

0.82

0.76

  1. Abbreviations: SMG = submandibular gland, WS = whole saliva, PG = parotid gland, U = units; normalized to 1 for unstimulated saliva in healthy controls.
  2. * MUC5B level in SMG saliva equal to 0.00 U at 12 months after RT.
  3. † The MUC5B x flow rate product (in μg/10 min) was calculated by multiplying the MUC5B concentration (in U) and SMG flow rate (in ml/10 min) for each patient at 12 months after RT and assuming 1 Unit is 230 μg/ml of MUC5B [13].
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Radiation Oncology

ISSN: 1748-717X

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