Ligita Pilkytė1, Ugnė Masilionytė1, Giedrė Maželytė2
1Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Academy of Medicine, Kaunas, Lithuania
2Vilnius University Hospital, Santaros Clinics, Centre of Hepatology, Gastroenterology and Dietetics, Vilnius, Lithuania
Abstract
Primary Sjogren’s syndrome is an autoimmune disease characterized by dry eyes, dry mouth and other disorders that can damage the lungs, kidneys, and nervous system. This disease is more common in women and usually is diagnosed in their 40’s. Due to the different course of the disease and the versatility of symptoms, it is difficult to diagnose in time. Various criteria are used to diagnose Sjogren’s syndrome. One of them was developed in 2016 by the American College of Rheumatology and the European League against Rheumatism. It includes Anti Ro / SSA antibody testing, eye examination and staining sample, Schirmer test, sialometry, and salivary gland biopsy. Radiological examinations may also be performed: salivary gland ultrasound or scintigraphy. The search was conducted using “PubMed” and “ScienceDirect” databases. English keywords that matched the topic of the article were used for the search. Sources not older than ten years were selected for the analysis.
Keywords: Primary Sjogren’s syndrome, rheumatology, dry eyes, xerostomia, EULAR, autoimmune diseases.