Which department should I see for Sjögren’s syndrome?
Sjögren's Syndrome is a chronic autoimmune disease that mainly manifests symptoms such as dry mouth and dry eyes, and may be accompanied by damage to multiple systems throughout the body. For patients, choosing the right department for treatment is crucial. This article will combine the hot topics and hot content on the Internet in the past 10 days to provide you with detailed answers to the departments where Sjögren’s syndrome should be treated and related precautions.
1. The main symptoms of Sjögren’s syndrome
Typical symptoms of Sjögren’s syndrome include:
| Symptoms | Description |
|---|---|
| dry mouth | Reduced saliva secretion, difficulty swallowing, and dry oral mucosa |
| Dry eyes | Insufficient tear secretion, dry and burning eyes, and easy fatigue |
| dry skin | Dehydrated skin may cause itching or scaling |
| joint pain | Some patients have symptoms of arthritis |
| systemic symptoms | Fatigue, low-grade fever, swollen lymph nodes, etc. |
2. Which department should I see for Sjögren’s syndrome?
Sjogren's syndrome involves multiple systems, so the department to be treated needs to be selected based on symptoms:
| Department | Reason for treatment |
|---|---|
| Rheumatology and Immunology | Sjogren's syndrome is an autoimmune disease, and rheumatology and immunology is the department of choice. |
| Ophthalmology | For dry eye symptoms, it is necessary to check the tear secretion function |
| Stomatology | When symptoms of dry mouth are severe, salivary gland function needs to be evaluated |
| Dermatology | Seek medical attention when symptoms such as dry skin and rash are obvious |
| Internal Medicine or General Practice | When you are diagnosed with unknown symptoms for the first time, you can first go to the internal medicine department for investigation. |
3. Diagnostic Methods of Sjögren’s Syndrome
The diagnosis of Sjögren's syndrome usually requires a combination of clinical symptoms and laboratory tests:
| Check items | function |
|---|---|
| blood test | Detect antinuclear antibodies (ANA), anti-SSA/SSB antibodies, etc. |
| tear secretion test | Assessing the degree of dryness of the eyes (such as Schirmer test) |
| Salivary gland function test | Measure saliva secretion or perform sialography |
| labial gland biopsy | One of the gold standards for diagnosing Sjögren's syndrome |
4. Treatment and management of Sjögren’s syndrome
There is currently no cure for Sjögren's syndrome, but symptoms can be relieved by:
| Treatment | Description |
|---|---|
| Artificial tears/saliva | Relieve symptoms of dry eyes and mouth |
| immunosuppressants | Control immune system overreaction (such as hydroxychloroquine) |
| Adjustment of lifestyle habits | Drink more water, avoid dry environments, quit smoking and limit alcohol consumption |
| Regular follow-up | Monitor disease progression and complications |
5. Hot topics on the Internet: Latest research progress on Sjögren’s syndrome
In the past 10 days, discussions about Sjögren’s syndrome have mainly focused on the following aspects:
| topic | Hot content |
|---|---|
| biologic therapy | The effectiveness of drugs such as rituximab in clinical trials |
| Traditional Chinese Medicine Conditioning | The improvement effect of traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions (such as Shengmai Yin) on symptoms |
| Patient support community | Online exchange of experiences among patients with Sjögren’s syndrome has become more popular |
| early diagnosis | Call for greater vigilance against atypical symptoms |
6. Summary
Sjogren's syndrome is a disease that requires multidisciplinary collaborative management. It is recommended to chooseRheumatology and Immunology, and cooperate with ophthalmology, dentistry and other specialist treatments according to symptoms. Timely diagnosis and standardized management can significantly improve patients' quality of life. If you or your family members develop relevant symptoms, please seek medical attention as soon as possible.
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