Primary Sjögren's syndrome in men: clinical and immunological characteristics.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the clinical and immunological characteristics of primary Sjögren's syndrome (SS) in men from a large series of unselected patients with this condition.


METHODS
We studied 223 consecutive patients (204 women and 19 men; mean age at onset 53 y, range 15-87 y, mean disease duration 77 months) with primary SS visited in our units. All these patients fulfilled 4 or more of the diagnostic criteria for SS proposed by the European Community Study Group in 1993.


RESULTS
Nineteen (9%) patients were men and they represent the male group described in this paper. Extraglandular manifestations during the course of their disease were present in 10 (53%) of our male patients with primary SS: articular involvement in 4 (21%) patients, interstitial pneumopathy in 3 (16%) and peripheral neuropathy in 2 (11%). ANA were positive in 13 (68%) patients, RF in 5 (31%), anti-Ro/SS-A in 3 (16%) and cryoglobulins in 1/14 (7%). When compared with women, men with primary SS presented a lower prevalence of articular involvement (21 percent; vs 46%, P=0.03, OR 0.32, CI 0.07-0.97).


CONCLUSIONS
Although primary SS is typically a disease of middle-aged women, clinicians should note that it may be diagnosed in male patients. Except for a lower prevalence of articular involvement, we could no find any notable differences in clinical and immunological characteristics between male and female patients with primary SS.
Cervera
R
R
Systemic Autoimmune Diseases Unit, Department of Medicine, IDIBAPS (Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques 'August Pi i Sunyer'), Hospital Clínic, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. cervera@medicina.ub.es
Font
J
J
Ramos-Casals
M
M
García-Carrasco
M
M
Rosas
J
J
Morlà
R M
RM
Muñoz
F J
FJ
Artigues
A
A
Pallarés
L
L
Ingelmo
M
M
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000974:Antibodies, Antinuclear / Q000032:analysis; D003450:Cryoglobulins / Q000032:analysis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012859:Sjogren's Syndrome / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology*
D000974:Antibodies, Antinuclear; D003450:Cryoglobulins; C035356:SS-A antibodies; C035357:SS-B antibodies