Serial correlation between saliva and blood beta-hydroxybutyrate levels in children commencing the ketogenic diet for epilepsy.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Accurate and user-friendly methods to measure beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) concentration are needed to guide the optimal use of ketogenic diet therapy (KDT). We aimed to determine the correlation between serum, capillary, and salivary BHB concentration, and to validate an electrochemical salivary BHB point-of-care test (POCT) in children commencing KDT for drug-resistant epilepsy.

Methods

This was a single center, prospective cohort study. Children <18 years with drug-resistant epilepsy electively admitted to Shenzhen Children's Hospital to initiate KDT between January 1, 2020 and June 30, 2021, were included. Over the 7-day admission, we collected paired saliva and capillary blood samples twice a day and serum blood samples on the first and last days of admission f

SUBMITTER: Kaul N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12455377 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature