1. A competitive protein-binding assay for 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25-OHD) in saliva has been established by adaptation of that previously described for 25-OHD in serum (Fairney et al. 1979).2. Random values of salivary 25-OHD in patients attending hospital for venesection showed a wide range of results (105-1000 pg/ml, n 55). These values corresponded to 1.2% of the total serum values with which they showed a significant relation (r 0.45, P < 0.001).3. There was no relation between salivary 25-OHD and measured serum free 25-OHD in eighteen pairs of saliva and serum studied.
METHODS
Collection of samplesUnstimulated samples of whole saliva (approximately 2 ml) were collected directly into glass bottles from normal volunteer subjects or patients attending for phlebotomy. Serum was collected simultaneously and all samples were stored in glass bottles at -20" until thawed before assay. Permission to collect these samples was obtained from the Local Ethical Commit tee.The saliva samples contained varying amounts of particulate matter to which 25-OHD3 bound on storage. To obtain a homogenous mixture for assay, the thawed samples were sonicated at amplitude 6 for 30 s before use, using a MSE Soniprep 150 (MSE Scientific Instruments, Crawley, Sussex).