A salivary collection method for young children

Salivary assays are a major physiological measure in studies of child development. Traditional collection techniques have generally involved children chewing on sterile dental cotton rolls. However, research suggests that, for an accurate assay, potential contaminants need to be minimized, both from...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inPsychophysiology Vol. 45; no. 3; pp. 353 - 355
Main Author Zimmermann, Laura K.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Malden, USA Blackwell Publishing Inc 01.05.2008
Blackwell Publishing Ltd
Subjects
Anura
Body fluids
Child development
Child psychology
Child, Preschool
Female
Humans
Hydrocortisone - analysis
Male
Measurement techniques
Methods
Preschool children
Research methodology
Saliva - chemistry
Salivary collection
Specimen Handling - methods
Specimen Handling - psychology
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Summary:Salivary assays are a major physiological measure in studies of child development. Traditional collection techniques have generally involved children chewing on sterile dental cotton rolls. However, research suggests that, for an accurate assay, potential contaminants need to be minimized, both from oral stimulants and the collection device. Moreover, the use of cotton requires that additional saliva be collected to compensate for the amount absorbed by the cotton itself. For these reasons I adapted the passive drooling collection protocol for use with young children. To this end, a game was created which involves frog puppets constructed so that a funnel, which serves as the frog's mouth, connects to a cryogenic vial housed in the frog's body. Details on the specifics of this methodology as well as the effectiveness of this approach are discussed.
Bibliography:ArticleID:PSYP647
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This research could not have been conducted without the support of Fund for Excellence grants from Shenandoah University and a Mednick Fellowship Grant from the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges.
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ISSN:0048-5772
1469-8986
1540-5958
DOI:10.1111/j.1469-8986.2008.00647.x