Blood and Saliva Lactate Levels Change in the Chemically Injured and Healthy Individuals in Response to Incremental Exercise

Aims. Lactate threshold (LT), a measure of exercise capacity, is the highest oxygen uptake during exercise without developing lactic acidosis. The Gold standard method for determining LT is to measure blood lactate concentration. It is reported that in exercise saliva lactate can be measured non-invasively in lieu of blood lactate. Methods. This study was designed to determine whether measurement of saliva lactate can be used as an alternative for blood lactate in the chemically injured. For this purpose, 17 patients were randomly sampled. They pedaled on an ergometer until exhaustion. Blood and saliva lactate levels were measured before, immediately after and thirty minutes after the exercise. Data were compared with those obtained in the sex and age-matched control grupe. Results. show that blood and saliva lactate increase during exercise in both groups (P<0.05). This increase, however, dose not show a significant correlation between blood and saliva lactate levels. Conclusion. In light of this exercise protocol we conclude that measurement of saliva lactate cannot replace measurement of blood lactate.