In sicca syndrome patients the xerostomia, xerophthalmia and the serological findings
may strongly suggest the autoimmune Sjögren’s syndrome, but the histological findings
in the labial salivary gland biopsies do not always justify the suspected diagnosis.
The aim of this study was to compare the histomorphological changes and the clinical
findings in patients with pathologically established Sjögren’s syndrome and in cases
with negative histology. A total of 133 labial biopsies have been retrospectively
evaluated from 2015 to May 2022, and the characteristic Sjögren’s lesions were found
in 67 cases. According to the clinical data, 34 cases proved to be primary, and 33
were associated (“secondary”) forms. In 66 cases, the histology did not justify Sjögren’s
syndrome; a significant acinar loss, fibrolipomatous infiltration, and mild sialadenitis
had led to the clinical symptoms. In Sjögren’s histologies, the acinar loss was detected
in just 31.8% of cases, which might indicate that the diminished saliva production
represents immune-mediated hypofunction rather than direct damage of the acini. This
is the first systemic study in Hungary investigating the correlation between pathological
alterations and clinical findings.
