Clinical features of Sjogren’s syndrome in patients with multiple sclerosis

Annunziata P, De Santi L, Di Rezze S, Millefiorini E, Capello E, Mancardi G, De Riz M, Scarpini E, Vecchio R, Patti F. Clinical features of Sjogren’s syndrome in patients with multiple sclerosis. Acta Neurol Scand: 2011: 124: 109–114. © 2010 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Objectives – To assess the frequency of clinical features of Sjogren’s syndrome (SS) in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) receiving treatment with disease-modifying drugs (DMDs) or naive to treatment and the possible association with clinical, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) parameters. Methods – A multicentre cross-sectional observational study was designed, based on a structured neurologist-administered questionnaire to 440 patients. Results – Twenty-eight of 230 (12%) patients receiving treatment with DMDs (DMDs+) and 14 of 210 (6.6%) treatment-naive patients (DMDs−) showed clinical features of SS. Four primary SS were diagnosed, two of which were DMDs+ and two were DMDs−. Sicca symptoms were significantly associated with higher EDSS scores (P = 0.018), a low frequency of gadolinium-enhanced MRI-positive lesions (P = 0.018) and cerebral disturbances (P = 0.001). Conclusions – Screening for the clinical features of SS should be performed in patients with MS both receiving treatment with immunomodulatory drugs and without therapy.