RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Congenital absence of salivary glands in Down syndrome
JF Archives of Disease in Childhood
JO Arch Dis Child
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
SP 781
OP 783
DO 10.1136/archdischild-2013-303841
VO 98
IS 10
A1 Marwan Odeh
A1 Miriyam Hershkovits
A1 Jacob Bornstein
A1 Norman Loberant
A1 Monique Blumenthal
A1 Ella Ophir
YR 2013
UL http://adc.bmj.com/content/98/10/781.abstract
AB Background Children with Down syndrome have different saliva composition compared to normal children. The presence or absence of the salivary glands has not been previously reported. Objective To examine the presence or absence of the salivary glands in children with Down syndrome. Methods 15 children with Down syndrome underwent an ultrasound examination of the salivary glands. The control group consisted of 31 healthy children. The areas of the parotid and submandibular glands on both sides were scanned in an attempt to demonstrate all four glands. The result was reported as ‘present’ or ‘absent’. Results In four children out of 15 with Down syndrome, one or more salivary glands were absent (26.7%), while in the controls all salivary glands were present. The difference between the groups was statistically significant (p=0.008). There was no significant difference between the groups regarding age and sex. Conclusions At least one salivary gland is undetected by ultrasound in some children with Down syndrome.