Elderly-onset primary Sjögren's syndrome focused on clinical and salivary gland ultrasonographic features

A pilot study of skin barrier function in patients with systemic sclerosis and primary Sjögren's syndrome

Objective

Although the close interactions between the epidermis and dermis of the skin have been widely explored, the skin barrier functions of the stratum corneum (SC) in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) and primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) are not well known. We aimed to investigate the biophysical characteristics of the skin, including transepidermal water loss (TEWL), the SC water content, erythema, and the melanin index, in patients with SSc and pSS.

Methods

This case-control study included 34 patients with SSc, 31 patients with pSS, and 25 healthy controls. All parameters were measured on the extensor surface of the forearm and compared between patients and healthy controls. In patients with SSc, we performed subgroup analyses by disease subtype (diffuse and limited cutaneous SSc), the modified Rodnan skin sclerosis score (>6 or ≤6), and comorbid secondary SS status. In patients with pSS, subgroup analyses were performed by anti-Ro/SSA antibody status and the findings of salivary gland ultrasound.

Results

No statistically significant differences were observed in TEWL or skin hydration between patients with SSc and pSS and healthy controls. In the pSS group, only the erythema index was significantly increased compared to the control group. In subgroup analyses, no significant differences were observed in the extent of TEWL or skin hydration by disease subtype, severity, autoantibody profile, or comorbidities.

Conclusion

Patients with SSc or pSS did not exhibit specific impairments of skin barrier function or skin hydration. Further studies with larger sample sizes and age-matched controls are required.

Laboratory features and pharmacological management of early and late-onset primary Sjögren's syndrome

BACKGROUND

Primary Sjögren's Syndrome (pSS) is a systemic chronic autoimmune disorder that contributes to dry mouth (xerostomia) and eyes (xerophthalmia). It mainly affects females between 40 and 60 years old. So far, there is no treatment to cure SS; however, there is a list of medications that can ameliorate the symptoms. In addition, there has been no single test until now to detect pSS, but clinical and immunological investigations are applied as diagnostic tools. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the characteristics of pSS in Saudi patients based on the onset of the disease through laboratory findings and pharmaceutical management.

METHODOLOGY

This retrospective study examined diagnosed patients with pSS between 2018 and 2023 from the National Guard Hospital, Saudi Arabia. Data of pSS patients was categorized into two groups: early (under 40 years old) and late-onset (40 years old and above). Data on demographic information, mortality rate, and blood tests such as complete blood count (CBC), creatinine, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and vitamin levels, in addition to prescribed medications, were collected from the patient's medical record. Chi-square and t-tests were mainly used, and statistical significance was determined at a P-value less than 0.05.

RESULTS

A total of 453 patients were included in the study, where the early-onset group comprised 136 and the late-onset group comprised 317 patients. The mean age of the early and late onset was 34.2 and 60.4, respectively. ESR was significantly higher in the early (46.3 mm/hr) and late-onset (49.8 mm/hr). The most common medication used by all pSS patients was hydroxychloroquine. However, artificial tears were mainly observed in the late-onset group. Other medications, such as pilocarpine, methotrexate, and azathioprine, were prescribed to pSS patients to a lesser extent.

CONCLUSION

This study suggests that the onset of pSS could occur even before the age of 40 among Saudi citizens. Notably, elevated ESR levels appeared to be a feature of pSS, which was consistent with other previous findings. The variability of some medications between early-onset and late-onset pSS may indicate disease progression. However, further investigations are required to confirm this observation.

Interstitial lung disease and associated factors in patients with Sjögren's syndrome

BACKGROUND

Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a common pulmonary manifestation of Sjögren's syndrome (SjS) and associated with an increased risk of death. Early detection and treatment of ILDs and knowing the risk factors are very important for prognosis in rheumatic diseases.

AIMS

This study was performed to determine ILD and associated factors in patients with SjS.

METHODS

Four hundred three SjS patients were evaluated in this cross-sectional cohort study. Clinical, laboratory, serological, and imaging features were compared of patients with and without pulmonary involvement. Logistic regression analyses were used to identify risk factors for lung involvement and to identify independent risk factors.

RESULTS

Thirty-five (8.7%) of SjS patients had ILD and 368 (91.3%) had no ILD. The presence of Raynaud's phenomenon was significantly more common in ILD. The geriatric age group over the age of 65 years (OR 8198; 95% CI 3788-17,742; p < 0.001), Raynaud's phenomenon (OR 17,852; 95% CI 6155-51,779; p < 0.001), and smoking (OR 3598; 95% CI 1495-8657; p = 0.003) were risk factors to be associated for ILD in the multivariable analysis. The most common abnormality was non-specific interstitial pneumonia in 20 patients (57.1%) and usual interstitial pneumonia in 15 (42.9%) patients.

CONCLUSIONS

The distribution of male patients compared to female patients was higher in patients with lung involvement than in patients without lung involvement. This may be related to older age, higher smoking rate, and longer nicotine consumption in men. Age, smoking, and severity of lung involvement are more important than inflammation status and autoantibodies for prognosis.

Disease Duration Affects the Clinical Phenotype of Primary Sjögren Syndrome: A Medical Records Review Study of 952 Cases

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the impact of disease duration on clinical phenotypes in Chinese patients with primary Sjögren syndrome (pSS) and examine the correlation between clinical phenotypes and onset age, age at diagnosis, and disease duration.

METHODS

Data from 952 patients diagnosed with pSS in China between January 2013 and March 2022 were analyzed based on medical records. Patients were categorized into 3 groups based on disease duration: short (<5 years), moderate (≥5 and <10 years), and long (≥10 years) group. Clinical characteristics were compared among the 3 groups, and pSS patients with a long disease duration were compared with the other patients after matching age at diagnosis and age at onset.

RESULTS

Among the patients, 20.4% had a disease duration over 10 years. After matching for age at onset and age at diagnosis, pSS patients with a long disease duration exhibited a significantly higher prevalence of dry mouth ( p <0.001), dry eyes ( p <0.001), fatigue ( p <0.001), arthralgia ( p <0.001), and dental caries ( p <0.001) and higher rates of anti-Sjögren syndrome A ( p < 0.05), anti-Ro52 ( p < 0.05), and anti-SSB ( p < 0.05) positivity than their control groups, with prevalence increasing with disease duration ( ptrend < 0.001). However, no differences were noted in the prevalence of interstitial lung disease and leukopenia between different disease duration groups after matching for age at onset, although differences were shown when matching for age at diagnosis.

CONCLUSION

Longer disease duration in pSS patients correlates with increased prevalence of sicca symptoms, fatigue, and arthralgia and higher positivity of autoantibodies associated with pSS. However, the prevalence of interstitial lung disease and leukopenia did not correlate with disease duration after matching for age at onset.

Estimated prevalence, incidence and healthcare costs of Sjögren's syndrome in France: a national claims-based study

OBJECTIVES

To estimate prevalence, incidence and mortality rates, and annual healthcare costs of primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) and SS associated with other autoimmune disorders (SS+AID) in France.

METHODS

French national healthcare claims-based study within the prospective Système National des Données de Santé database that includes the majority of the French population. An algorithm was developed to identify patients with SS and SS-related healthcare claims were analysed between 2011 and 2018.

RESULTS

Overall, 23 848 patients with pSS and 14 809 with SS+AID were identified. From 2011 to 2018, the prevalence rate increased slightly for pSS (23-32 per 100000) and SS+AID (16-20 per 100 000), with females comprising 90%-91% and 92%-93% of cases, respectively. The incidence rate of SS per 100 000 persons decreased from 2012 (pSS: 4.3; SS+AID: 2.0) to 2017 (pSS: 0.7; SS+AID: 0.3). Mortality rates per 100 000 persons increased from 2012 to 2018 in patients with pSS (0.2-0.8) or SS+AID (0.1-0.5); mean age of death also increased. Artificial tears and hydroxychloroquine were the most common drug reimbursements. Less than half of patients received annual specialist care from a dentist or ophthalmologist. Healthcare costs associated with SS increased from 2011 to 2018 and exceeded the national estimate of expected costs for chronic diseases.

CONCLUSION

In this large French population database study, the low prevalence of pSS confirms that it is an orphan disease. SS is clinically and economically burdensome; these findings may help clinicians better understand routine healthcare received by patients.

Risk factors and prognosis of interstitial lung disease for primary Sjögren syndrome patients: A retrospective case‒control study

OBJECTIVE

To determine the prevalence, clinical features, risk factors, and prognosis of interstitial lung disease (ILD) in patients with primary Sjogren's syndrome (pSS).

METHODS

Data from 274 pSS patients from August 2013 to August 2022 were reviewed. The clinical features of pSS with ILD were revealed. Logistic regression was used to determine risk factors for ILD in pSS patients. Survival analysis and Cox regression were used to analyse the prognosis and prognostic factors of pSS patients.

RESULTS

In pSS patients, the prevalence of ILD was 22.3% (61/274). The pSS patients with ILD were characterized by a late onset and long disease course, with a nonspecific interstitial pneumonia (NSIP) pattern as the predominant high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) finding. Logistic regression results indicated that an age over 50 years old (OR 4.786, 95% CI 1.602-14.299; P = 0.005), purpuric rash (OR 4.695, 95% CI 1.537-14.339; P = 0.007), AMA-M2 antibody positivity (OR 2.582, 95% CI 1.166-5.722; P = 0.019), and diabetes (OR 2.514, 95% CI 1.025-6.167; P = 0.044) were risk factors for ILD in pSS patients. Cox regression results showed that advanced age (HR 1.240, 95% CI 1.088-1.413; P = 0.001) and cancer history (HR 8.411, 95% CI 1.771-39.934; P = 0.007) were risk factors for pSS patient survival.

CONCLUSION

This study showed that pSS patients with ILD tended to have a late onset and long course of pSS. An age over 50 years, purpuric rash, AMA-M2 antibody positivity, and diabetes were risk factors for ILD in pSS patients. Advanced age and cancer history were prognostic factors in pSS patients. Key Points • This study showed that pSS patients with ILD tended to have a late-onset and lengthy course of pSS, with the NSIP pattern as the predominant lung image. • The risk factors for ILD in pSS patients determined in this study were an age over 50 years, purpuric rash, AMA-M2 antibody positivity, and diabetes. • The prognostic risk factors for pSS patients were advanced age and cancer history.

Screening biomarkers for Sjogren's Syndrome by computer analysis and evaluating the expression correlations with the levels of immune cells

Background

Sjögren's syndrome (SS) is a systemic autoimmune disease that affects about 0.04-0.1% of the general population. SS diagnosis depends on symptoms, clinical signs, autoimmune serology, and even invasive histopathological examination. This study explored biomarkers for SS diagnosis.

Methods

We downloaded three datasets of SS patients' and healthy pepole's whole blood (GSE51092, GSE66795, and GSE140161) from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. We used machine learning algorithm to mine possible diagnostic biomarkers for SS patients. Additionally, we assessed the biomarkers' diagnostic value using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Moreover, we confirmed the expression of the biomarkers through the reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) using our own Chinese cohort. Eventually, the proportions of 22 immune cells in SS patients were calculated by CIBERSORT, and connections between the expression of the biomarkers and immune cell ratios were studied.

Results

We obtained 43 DEGs that were mainly involved in immune-related pathways. Next, 11 candidate biomarkers were selected and validated by the validation cohort data set. Besides, the area under curves (AUC) of XAF1, STAT1, IFI27, HES4, TTC21A, and OTOF in the discovery and validation datasets were 0.903 and 0.877, respectively. Subsequently, eight genes, including HES4, IFI27, LY6E, OTOF, STAT1, TTC21A, XAF1, and ZCCHC2, were selected as prospective biomarkers and verified by RT-qPCR. Finally, we revealed the most relevant immune cells with the expression of HES4, IFI27, LY6E, OTOF, TTC21A, XAF1, and ZCCHC2.

Conclusion

In this paper, we identified seven key biomarkers that have potential value for diagnosing Chinese SS patients.

Characteristics of Chest HRCT and pulmonary function tests in elderly-onset primary Sjögren syndrome with interstitial lung disease

To investigate the characteristics of elderly-onset primary Sjögren syndrome (pSS) using chest high-resolution computed tomography and pulmonary function tests (PFTs). The data of 102 patients with pSS with interstitial lung disease were retrospectively analyzed. The chest high-resolution computed tomography, PFTs, and clinical and laboratory data were evaluated based on the age of onset: elderly-onset pSS (EopSS) (≥65 years) versus adult-onset pSS (AopSS) (<65 years). Among the 102 patients with pSS-interstitial lung disease, there were 34 of EopSS and 68 of AopSS. EopSS patients presented a significantly higher incidence of usual interstitial pneumonia (EopSS [38.2%] vs AopSS [11.8%], P = .005) and a significantly lower incidence of nonspecific interstitial pneumonia (EopSS [8.8%] vs AopSS [25%], P = .042). Unlike the AopSS group, the significant decreases in the vital capacity (VC) (the percentage of the predicted value of each parameter [%pred]) and the forced VC (%pred), PFTs showed that VC (%pred) and forced VC (%pred) were >80% in the EopSS group. Forced expiratory volume in 1 second significantly decreased and residual volume significantly increased in the EopSS group (P = .001). The percentage of small airway disease was significantly higher in the EopSS group (P = .021). Diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide/alveolar volume (%pred) was <80% in both groups with a lower percentage in the AopSS group. Usual interstitial pneumonia is more common in the EopSS group. Although there is no significant difference in ventilation dysfunction between the EopSS and AopSS groups, small airway disease is more common in the EopSS group, while restrictive ventilatory dysfunction is more common in the AopSS group. Therefore, the EopSS group has its own characteristics and it is worth studying and noting.

Impact of age on the diagnostic performance of unstimulated salivary flow rates and salivary gland ultrasound for primary Sjögren's syndrome

Background

Age-related changes and different patterns of salivary gland abnormalities according to age may affect the diagnostic performance of unstimulated salivary flow rate (USFR) and salivary gland ultrasound (SGUS) for primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS). We aimed to evaluate the threshold and diagnostic performance of USFR and whether incorporating SGUS or replacing USFR with SGUS affects the performance of the ACR/EULAR criteria for pSS according to age.

Materials and methods

This medical chart review study included patients with suspected pSS who completed evaluations for pSS. Patients were classified based on age at pSS evaluation: elderly (≥65 years), middle-aged (40–64), and young (&lt; 40). The USFR's optimal thresholds were evaluated using the ROC curve. The diagnostic performances of the USFR and modified ACR/EULAR criteria were compared.

Results

In total, 239 pSS patients and 92 patients with idiopathic sicca syndrome were included. The cut-off of USFR ≤ 0.1 mL/min was irrelevant to age, demonstrating the best sensitivity (44.3–53.0%) and specificity (74.1–90.9%). SGUS had a significantly better AUC than USFR in the young (p &lt; 0.01) and middle-aged groups (p &lt; 0.01). The middle-aged group demonstrated better diagnostic performance of the ACR/EULAR criteria incorporating SGUS (AUC 0.957) (p &lt; 0.01) and criteria replacing USFR with SGUS (AUC 0.957) (p &lt; 0.001) compared to the original criteria (AUC 0.916). In the young and elderly groups, adding SGUS to the ACR/EULAR criteria or replacing USFR with SGUS did not significantly increase the AUC.

Conclusions

The thresholds of USFR ≤ 0.1 mL/min was optimal, irrespective of age. Using SGUS can improve diagnostic accuracy of ACR/EULAR criteria by supplementing the USFR, especially in middle-aged patients.

A Novel Technique for the Evaluation and Interpretation of Elastography in Salivary Gland Involvement in Primary Sjögren Syndrome

Ultrasound (US) of major salivary glands (MSG) evaluates echogenicity, border features and vascularization, with elastography, it can detect tissue elasticity and glandular fibrosis, related to inflammation in Primary Sjögren’s syndrome (pSS). This study aimed to develop a novel technique by pixel analysis for evaluation and interpretation of elastography in MSG in pSS. A cross-sectional and observational multicenter study was conducted. The US of MSG performed in orthogonal planes in grayscale, Doppler, and shear-wave elastography. For elastography images of each gland were analyzed with the open-source program ImageJ to perform a pixel analysis. Statistical analysis was performed with the IBM-SPSS v25 program. Fifty-nine women with a mean age of 57.69 (23–83) years were recruited; pSS mean duration of 87 (5–275) months, and 12 healthy women without sicca symptoms as a control group with a mean age of 50.67 (42–60) years. Intragroup analysis showed p-values >0.05 between sicca symptoms, ocular/dryness tests, biopsy, US, and pixel analysis; correlation between Hocevar and pixel analysis was not found (rho < 0.1, p >0.5). MSG anatomical size was 41.7 ± 28.2 mm vs. 67.6 ± 8.8 mm (p ≤ 0.0001); unstimulated whole saliva flow rate was 0.80 ± 0.80 ml/5 min vs. 1.85 ± 1.27 ml/5 min (p = 0.016). The elastography values (absolute number of pixels) were 572.38 ± 99.21 vs. 539.69 ± 93.12 (p = 0.290). A cut-off point risk for pSS identified with less than 54% of red pixels in the global MSG mass [OR of 3.8 95% CI (1.01–15.00)]. Pixel analysis is a new tool that could lead to a better understanding of the MSG chronic inflammatory process in pSS.

Sjögren syndrome: looking forward to the future

Primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) is a heterogeneous disease characterised by a wide spectrum of manifestations that vary according to the different stages of the disease and among different subsets of patients. The aim of this qualitative literature review is to summarise the recent advances that have been reported in pSS, ranging from the early phases to the established disease and its complications. We analysed the diagnostic, prognostic, and management aspects of pSS, with a look into future clinical and research developments. The early phases of pSS, usually antedating diagnosis, allow us to investigate the pathophysiology and risk factors of the overt disease, thus allowing better and timely patient stratification. Salivary gland ultrasound (SGUS) is emerging as a valid complementary, or even alternative, tool for histopathology in the diagnosis of pSS, due to a standardised scoring system with good agreement and performance. Other promising innovations include the application of artificial intelligence to SGUS, ultrasound-guided core needle biopsy, and a wide array of novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers. Stratifying pSS patients through the integration of clinical, laboratory, imaging, and histopathological data; differentiating between activity-related and damage-related manifestations; and identifying patients at higher risk of lymphoma development are essential steps for an optimal management and individualised treatment approach. As new treatment options are emerging for both glandular and systemic manifestations, there is a need for a more reliable treatment response evaluation. pSS is a complex and heterogeneous disease, and many distinct aspects should be considered in the different stages of the disease and subsets of patients. In recent years, efforts have been made to improve our understanding of the disease, and certainly in the coming years, some of these novelties will become part of our routine clinical practice, thus improving the management of pSS patients.