Sialolithiasis is a chronic disease characterized by the formation of concretions in the salivary glands and their excretory ducts. Judging by the occurrence of sialolithiasis it occupies a dominant position in the prevalence in the general structure of chronic sialoadenitis. According to A.A. Timofeev’s data (1998) that are based on the analysis of the incidence of diseases of the salivary glands in a 10-year period, calculous sialoadenitis was found in 54.5% of patients with chronic sialoadenitis, which is 31.7% of all non-neoplastic diseases of major salivary glands. Thus, the author emphasizes that the dominant localization is submandibular salivary gland (SMSG) – 98.2% of cases, while calculous parotitis was found only in 1.8% of patients. A.M. Solntsev et al. (1991) found calculous sialoadenitis of SMSG in 97.6% of patients, and sialolithiasis of parotid salivary glands (PSG) only in 2.4% of cases. According to the authors multiple calculi are not uncommon, as they have been found in 5.5% of patients with calculous submaxillitis.

Similar results of a retrospective analysis of the incidence of salivary gland disorders provide L.J. Peterson et al. (1998) revealing the prevalence of sialolithiasis of SMSG (85.0% of patients), multiple concrements in about 25.0% of cases, calculous parotitis diagnosed in about 10% of patients, and the rest of cases being sialolithiasis of sublingual salivary glands (SLSG). By J. Lustmann et al. (1990), among 244 patients involved in the study, SMSG sialolithiasis was found in 94.3% of patients, and most calculi were single (75.3% of cases), double in 15.6% of patients, and the rest of cases had 3 or more salivary stones. T.T. Boynton et al. (2002) confirm these data by the study and position the prevalence of calculous submaxillitis at the level of 80.0-90.0% of all cases of sialolithiasis. According to a number of local and foreign scholars, sialolithiasis is not specific to age and gender. In particular, according to A.A. Timofeev (1998) men and women suffer equally and their age mainly ranges from 16 to 55. Similar data on age are provided by L. Dunphy (2011) in the analysis of 61 clinical cases in a 5-year period, where age ranged from 22 to 83 indicating a slight numerical predominance of women over men (32 women and 29 men respectively). J. Lustmann et al. (1990) analysed 245 clinical cases and displayed the relationship between men and women as 1:1 with age ranges from 6 to 94. However, contrary to them L.J. Peterson et al. (1998) reported on the prevalence of disease detecting double incidence of sialolithiasis in men than women.

Average age at the time of disease was 30 to 50. According to A.M. Solntsev et al. (1991) sialolithiasis was found in 61.3% of male patients, calculous sialoadenitis was diagnosed in women in 38.7% of cases, respectively. The average age of patients did not have gender characteristics and was about 40 years old. This is also confirmed by the A.K.C. Leung et al. (1999). The size and shape of a concrement is an important aspect and must be taken into account when planning the treatment of sialolithiasis. Thus, A.M. Solntsev and et al. (1991) found no relationship between the size of calculi that can range from 1 mm to 2.3 cm in diameter and the duration of disease. The most common form of salivary stones located in the excretory ducts is spherical or ovoid, rounded calculi are most often found in the parenchyma of glands. The aetiology of sialolithiasis is currently understudied. V.A. Malanchuk et al. (2011) suggest that the main factors are inflammatory changes, disruption of phosphorus and calcium metabolism, vitamin A deficiency.

Necessary condition for the formation of stones is dilation and constriction of excretory ducts, decreased secretory activity of a gland, an increase in viscosity and alkalinity of saliva. The same opinion is held to by R. Rauso et al. (2012) who believe the basic composition of concretions to be mucus and salts of phosphorus and calcium. According to T.T. Boynton et al. (2014) calculi are crystallized mineral formations with high calcium content. In A.M. Solntsev’s and et al. opinion (1991) the disease is polyetiological mainly related to the disruption in phosphorus and calcium metabolism.

Taking into account the above mentioned results and observations, we could reasonably state that sialolithiasis is the most common polyetiological disease of major salivary glands of non-neoplastic origin.

Keywords: calculous sialoadenitis, megalith, salivary stones, sialolithiasis, submandibular salivary gland

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