Antibiotic concentrations in saliva: a systematic review of the literature, with clinical implications for the treatment of sialadenitis.

PURPOSE: The current recommendations for the treatment of bacterial salivary gland infections are mainly empirical. Therefore, an evidence-based literature review was conducted to identify antibiotics with favorable pharmacokinetics in saliva and to establish recommendations for the antibiotic treatment of sialadenitis.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: The authors performed a systematic review of the pertinent literature published from 1985 to 2013. If the predefined inclusion criteria were met, the articles were screened for various variables: antibiotic type, mode of administration, type of examined saliva, peak salivary antibiotic concentrations, biochemical methodology, and minimal inhibitory concentrations of bacteria implicated in sialadenitis (Staphylococcus aureus, Viridans streptococci, various gram-negative strains, and anaerobes).

RESULTS: The review included 18 studies. The systematic analysis of the reported results concurred that intravenously administered cephalosporins achieve the highest concentrations in saliva, followed by orally administered cephalosporins and fluoroquinolones. These concentrations exceed the minimal inhibitory concentrations of the bacteria of interest. Phenoxymethylpenicillin and tetracyclines are not secreted in the saliva at bactericidal levels. The antibiotic peak salivary levels depended on the type of saliva examined (parotid vs submandibular vs minor salivary gland) and the biochemical method of measurement (high-performance liquid chromatography vs bioassay).

CONCLUSION: Cephalosporins and fluoroquinolones display superior pharmacokinetics in saliva and cover the spectrum of all bacteria implicated in sialadenitis. Within the limitations of this review, they can be recommended for the treatment of bacterial salivary gland infections.