Enlightening Knowledge of Salivary Gland Dysfunction

Saliva is the mirror of oral health; which has become an important resource for evaluating physiological and pathological conditions in the human body.In the last 15 years, significant improvement has been made in our understanding of the molecular basis of salivary gland development, supplanting and expanding classical teaching in the embryology and developmental anatomy. Early work suggests that development of the salivary glands begins during the sixth to eighth embryonic week. The development of salivary glands is thought to consist of three main stages.In short we should have thorough knowledge of the medical history of each individual patient before proceeding to clinical examination. Meticulous examination of head and neck as well as intraoral inspection should be carried out. Palpation will provide information about the size, consistency, tenderness, of salivary gland. Although a few newer techniques may be useful in defining salivary gland pathology, standard plain film imaging continues to provide useful information for diagnostic purposes.