SPOUCH
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Do salivary proteins predict causes of oral ulceration in children?
IRAS ID
318522
Contact name
Christian M. Hedrich
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Liverpool
Duration of Study in the UK
4 years, 11 months, 30 days
Research summary
Oral ulcers are a relatively common concern in children and young people. Ulcers can cause significant discomfort and affect an individual’s ability to eat, drink and participate in daily activities, including school. The cause of oral ulceration is not always known (idiopathic) but some common causes include infections, stress and trauma. In addition, oral ulcers can also be a symptom of underlying systemic autoimmune or inflammatory disease, such as Behçet’s disease (BD), Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and Sjögren’s syndrome (SS) or Crohn’s Disease (CD).
In children and young people especially, there may be delays in diagnosing BD, SLE, SS or CD due to the variable signs and symptoms that may present. This group may show less typical features and symptoms sometimes overlap between two or more of these diseases. As a result, children and young people may experience delays in their diagnosis leading to more discomfort and a poorer quality of life.
This study hopes to explore whether there are specific proteins in the saliva of children and young people with BD, SLE, SS or CD that may also serve as diagnostic tools (salivary biomarkers). This will allow for more timely diagnosis and initiation of treatment, significantly reduce the disease burden for children/young people affected by oral ulcers, and also lower the financial impact to the NHS caused by diagnostic delays and inappropriate management.
Children and young people aged between 4 and 18 years old, and with a diagnosis of BD, SLE/SS, CD will be recruited from Alder Hey Children's Hospital. Healthy controls will also be recruited from the same hospital. Participants will provide a saliva sample that will then be analysed by state-of-the-art scientific techniques (mass spectrometry) to assess for possible disease biomarkers.
REC name
North West - Greater Manchester Central Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
23/NW/0317
Date of REC Opinion
3 Nov 2023
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion