Systemic manifestations of Sjögren’s syndrome

Authors:

Katarina Borić, Dijana Perković

Summary

Sjögren’s syndrome (SS) is a heterogeneous disease which, in the majority of cases, includes a mild clinical course. However, in some patients it takes on a severe form with numerous systemic manifestations and results in an adverse outcome. Systemic manifestations occur in approximately 25% of patients with primary Sjögren’s syndrome (pSS). The clinical presentation of systemic manifestations of SS is very diverse and can involve any organ system. Systemic manifestations can occur due to lymphocytic infiltration of organs or proliferation of B lymphocytes and deposition of immune complexes. Fatigue is the most common systemic manifestation. The most significant cutaneous manifestations of the disease are palpable purpura, ulcerations, urticarial vasculitis and leukocytoclastic vasculitis. Musculoskeletal manifestations can range from arthralgias to erosive arthritis. Pulmonary involvement may include symptoms such as nonspecific interstitial pneumonia with fibrosis and tracheobronchial disease. Renal changes are observed in 10% to 30% of patients with SS. Tubulointerstitial nephritis, type 1 renal tubular acidosis and nephrogenic diabetes insipidus can develop as a consequence of lymphocytic infiltration. Less often, the inflammatory process affects the glomeruli which leads to glomerulonephritis. Liver diseases are found in approximately 20% of patients with SS and their symptoms usually include inflammation of intrahepatic bile ducts resembling primary biliary cirrhosis. The manifestations of peripheral nervous system involvement include sensorimotor axonal polyneuropathy, mononeuritis multiplex, neuropathies and radiculopathies. Optic neuropathy, hemiparesis, movement disorders, cerebellar syndromes, transient ischemic attacks, transverse myelitis (less commonly), and progressive myelopathy have been described as central nervous system changes. Symptoms of vasculitis can range from mononeuritis multiplex to intestinal ischemia and
dysfunction of the affected organs. The development of non-Hodgkin’s B-cell lymphoma is a major complication of the disease which occurs in 5%–7% of patients with SS.

Sažetak

Sjögrenov sindrom (SS) je heterogena bolest koja se najčešće prezentira blagim kliničkim tijekom. Međutim, u manjeg dijela bolesnika poprima teški oblik bolesti s brojnim sistemskim manifestacijama i mogućim lošim ishodom. Sistemske manifestacije se pojavljuju u približno 25% bolesnika s primarnim Sjögrenovim sindromom (pSS). Klinička prezentacija sistemskih očitovanja SS-a vrlo je raznolika i može zahvatiti bilo koji organski sustav. Mogu nastati uslijed limfocitne infiltracije organa ili proliferacije limfocita B i odlaganja imunih kompleksa. Umor je najčešća sistemska manifestacija. Najznačajnije dermatološke manifestacije bolesti su palpabilna purpura, ulceracije, urtikarijalni i leukocitoklastični vaskulitis. Koštano-mišićne manifestacije u bolesnika s pSS-om pojavljuju se u širokom rasponu od artralgija do erozivnog artritisa. Zahvaćenost pluća može se očitovati kao nespecifična intersticijska pneumonija s fibrozom i traheobronhalna bolest s povećanom reaktivnošću bronha, bronhiektazijama, bronhiolitisom ili ponavljajućim respiratornim infekcijama. Bubrežne promjene se uočavaju u 10–30% bolesnika sa SS-om. Kao posljedica limfocitne infiltracije razvija se tubularni intersticijski nefritis, renalna tubularna acidoza tipa I, nefrogeni dijabetes insipidus i ostali poremećaji tubularne funkcije. Znatno rjeđe upalni proces zahvaća glomerule dovodeći do glomerulonefritisa. Jetreni poremećaji se nalaze u oko 20% bolesnika sa SS-om, a najčešće se očituju upalnim promjenama intrahepatalnih žučnih vodova nalikujući primarnoj bilijarnoj cirozi. Zahvaćenost perifernoga živčanog sustava manifestira se senzomotornom aksonalnom polineuropatijom, senzornom ataksičnom i autonomnom neuropatijom, mononeuritisom multipleks, kranijalnim neuropatijama i radikulopatijama. Od promjena središnjega živčanog sustava opisuju se optička neuropatija, hemipareza, poremećaji pokreta, cerebelarni sindromi, tranzitorne ishemijske atake, rjeđe transverzalni mijelitis i progresivna mijelopatija. Simptomi vaskulitisa mogu varirati od mononeuritisa multipleksa do ishemije crijeva i disfunkcije zahvaćenih organa. Razvoj non-Hodgkinovog limfoma B-stanica predstavlja glavnu komplikaciju bolesti i pojavljuje se u 5–7% bolesnika sa Sjögrenovim sindromom. 

Vol.: Reumatizam 2021;68(2):61–68

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