Timed saliva sampling as a new reliable marker for assessing iodine intake

Demographic data		N = 104
Age (y) (range)		43 (23-74)
Gender (%)	Men	32 (30.8)
Gender (%)	Women	72 (69.2)
TSH (mIU/L) (IQR)		1.68 (1.22-2.30)
Smoking (%)	Smokers	7 (6.7)
Smoking (%)	Non-smokers	97 (93.3)
Salt (%)	Iodized	98 (94.2)
Salt (%)	Non-iodized	6 (5.8)

[i] IQR = interquartile range; TSH = thyroid-stimulating hormone

TABLE 2.

Median volume, measured and calculated values of iodine and creatinine in 24-hour urine

N = 104	Median (IQR)
Volume of 24-hour urine (L)	2.0 (1.4-2.7)
Measured iodine concentration in 24-hour urine (μg/L) - UIC	70.6 (50.7-95.2)
Measured creatinine concentration in 24-hour urine (g/L)	0.61 (0.47-0.86)
Calculated amount of iodine in 24-hour urine (μg) – UIE	137.1 (103.3-173.2)
Calculated amount of creatinine in 24-hour urine (g)	1.18 (0.98-1.59)
Calculated amount of iodine/creatinine in 24-hour urine (μg/g)	108.6 (82.5-134.0)

[i] IQR = interquartile range; UIC = urinary iodine concentration; UIE = urinary iodine excretion

TABLE 3.

Median SLIC per meal, including different time points of saliva sampling, before (0 min) and 30, 60, and 120 min after the meal. The median SLIC was also compared among the different time points of saliva sampling, and a comparison was made with UIE

Meal	N	Time of sampling (min)		SLIC (μg/L)	¹P	²P	³P	⁴P	⁵P	⁶P
1	104	0	median (IQR)	92.7 (60.2-166.1)	P = 0.994	P = 0.208	P = 0.013	P = 0.005	P = 0.002	P = 0.001
		30		100.3 (73.3-136.4)	P = 0.994					P < 0.001
		60		119.7 (90.7-168.9)	P = 0.533					P = 0.138
		120		123.2 (90.9-178.7)	P = 0.533					P = 0.491
2	104	0	median (IQR)	76.7 (53.7-115.3)	P < 0.001	P < 0.001	P < 0.001	P = 0.003	P = 0.006	P < 0.001
		30		110.0 (83.7-182.6)	P < 0.001					P = 0.064
		60		141.1 (102.4-237.5)	P = 0.925					P = 0.176
		120		159.9 (87.9-235.5)	P = 0.925					P = 0.116
3	92	0	median (IQR)	98.3 (62.5-146.7)	P = 0.001	P < 0.001	P < 0.001	P = 0.007	P =0.002	P< 0.001
		30		127.3 (97.1-183.7)	P = 0.001					P = 0.981
		60		163.0 (120.6-276.5)	P = 0.590					P = 0.002
		120		163.0 (120.6-276.5)	P = 0.590					P < 0.001
4	26	0	median (IQR)	108.2 (66.1-163.6)	P = 0.464	P = 0.001	P = 0.002	P = 0.006	P = 0.004	P=0.040
		30		112.2 (98.9-154.2	P = 0.464					P = 0.163
		60		173.8 (136.1-237.9)	P = 0.714					P = 0.012
		120		183.8 (120.9-268.6)	P = 0.714					P = 0.012

1 P-value, comparison of SLIC before (0) meal and 30 min (above) after, and 60, and 120 min (below) after meal,

2 P-value, comparison of SLIC before (0) meal and 60 min after meal,

3 P-value, comparison of SLIC before (0) meal and 120 min after meal,

4 P-value, comparison of SLIC 30 and 60 min after meal,

5 P-value, comparison of SLIC 30 and 120 min after meal,

6 P-value, comparison of SLIC before (0) meal and after meal (30 min, 60 min and 120 min, respectively) with UIE.

IQR = interquartile range; SLIC = salivary iodine concentration; UIE = urinary iodine excretion

References

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Articles in this issue

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/raon-2026-0045 | Journal eISSN: 1581-3207 | Journal ISSN: 1318-2099

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Language: English

Page range: 339 - 345

Submitted on: Mar 11, 2026

Accepted on: Jul 6, 2026

Published on: Sep 7, 2026

Published by: Association of Radiology and Oncology

In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services

Publication frequency: 4 issues per year

Keywords:

Sandell-Kolthoff reaction,

salivary iodine concentration,

iodine excretion in the 24-hour urine,

ICP-MS,

saliva,

Related subjects:

© 2026 Adrijana Oblak, Jernej Imperl, Mitja Kolar, Gregor Marolt, Blaz Krhin, Katja Zaletel, Simona Gaberscek, published by Association of Radiology and Oncology
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Volume 60 (2026): Issue 3 (September 2026)