dry skin. tiredness and fatigue – which are common and can lead to total exhaustion. muscle pain. joint pain, stiffness and swelling.
Joint pain is one of the most common symptoms of Sjögren's syndrome. Multiple joints are painful, usually episodically with periods of joint pain, known as “flares”, followed by periods of little or no joint pain. Tenderness and swelling of the joints, when present, are indicative of inflammatory arthritis.
Overview of Sjögren's Syndrome
The main symptoms are dry eyes and mouth, but other parts of the body may be affected as well, with many people reporting fatigue and joint and muscle pain. In addition, the disease can damage the lungs, kidneys, and nervous system.
A flare-up, often referred to as a “flare,” is a sudden, severe onset of symptoms. As example, you've been managing well, your symptoms have lessened and, having momentarily forgotten the pain and dryness, you've been living 'full out' as you used to. Then, suddenly, those angry symptoms are back!
Avoiding foods that tend to exacerbate symptoms including alcohol, caffeine, acidic foods, and spicy foods.
In more serious cases of Sjögren's syndrome, the immune system can attack other parts of the body, causing symptoms and conditions such as: dry skin. tiredness and fatigue – which are common and can lead to total exhaustion.
Sjögren's syndrome can cause nerve damage which regulates the coordination of heartbeat, respiration, and gastric motility. This is called an “autonomic neuropathy.” Examples of symptoms include lightheadedness when standing, decreased or increased sweating, and feeling full despite eating small meals.
This condition is frequently associated with other autoimmune disorders including rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Sjogren syndrome is managed by replacing moisture at affected glandular sites and diminishing the autoimmune response locally as well as systemically.
Sjogren's Syndrome patients often complain of mental fatigue or “brain fog.” Brain fog impairs focus, causes fuzzy concentration, and contributes to difficulty in problem-solving.
If Sjögren's syndrome isn't treated appropriately, significant, long-term complications could result that affect your eyes, mouth, lungs, kidneys, liver or lymph nodes — complications including blindness, significant dental destruction and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Patients with Sjogren's syndrome (SS) frequently have irritable bowel like symptoms (IBS). Some have celiac sprue.
Dry mouth, mouth sores, dental decay, difficulty with chewing, speech, taste and dentures. Swollen, painful parotid/salivary glands. Difficulty swallowing, heartburn, reflux, esophagitis. Fatigue, vasculitis, lymphoma, dry skin, skin sensitivity to UV light.
Patients with pSS have an increased risk of newly diagnosed depressive and/or anxiety disorders and sleep disorders that may impair their quality of life [4,13,14]. Moreover, unpredictable course of the disease and increased risk of developing lymphoma may additionally affect psychological status of pSS patients [15].
Falk: What kinds of factors can make Sjogren's worse? What is the effect, for example, of stress? Jonas: Well, like all autoimmune diseases, patients who feel stressed or are under unusual stress will often have exacerbation of their symptoms. Learning to manage that stress in your life is very important.
Sjogren's is a serious condition, but timely treatment can mean that complications are less likely to develop, and tissue damage is less likely to occur. Once treated, an individual can usually manage the condition well. Sjogren's can develop at any age, but most diagnoses occur after the age of 40 years.
The condition may progress slowly, so the typical symptoms of dry eyes and mouth may take years to show. However, rapid onset can also occur. Symptoms can be mild, moderate or severe, and the progression is often unpredictable.
Sjögren's syndrome doesn't cause weight gain. However, medications (like steroids) used to treat symptoms may cause weight gain. Also, there are conditions like hypothyroidism that may be linked to Sjögren's syndrome that can result in unintended weight gain.
Phase two showed that people with Sjogren's syndrome tended to have problematic sleep. These patients would have more nighttime awakenings and have lower sleep efficiency, meaning they spent more time in bed without sleeping. The patients with Sjogren's had an overall lower quality of sleep [8].
In most people with Sjögren syndrome, dry eyes and dry mouth are the primary features of the disorder, and general health and life expectancy are largely unaffected.
Although the hallmark symptoms are dry eyes, dry mouth, fatigue and joint pain, Sjögren's is a systemic disease and affects the entire body. Fatigue is often described as one of the most debilitating symptoms of Sjögren's.
Gastroparesis (delayed gastric emptying) occurs in Sjögren's (30-70%), and, similar to Diabetes, causes upper abdominal pain/fullness/nausea. Gastric parietal cells can be destroyed leading to B12 deficiency.
Thyroid problems and anemia are common in Sjogren's syndrome patients and can cause fatigue. Usually, fatigue due to thyroid dysfunction and anemia can be resolved when the underlying problem is taken care of.
Ear lesions, leading to severe sensorineural hearing loss may be an early manifestation of SS, even if it is also a less common feature of other autoimmune disorders such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and rheumatoid arthritis.