Although patients with Sj?gren’s syndrome generally have good oral hygiene habits, a recent study found that their overall oral health is significantly worse than that of the general population. The study shows that this difference may be closely related to reduced saliva secretion.
Sj?gren’s syndrome is an autoimmune disease in which the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks its own tissues, especially the glands that produce saliva and tears.
This attack can lead to dry mouth and insufficient saliva secretion, which disrupts the natural balance of the oral environment and increases the risk of caries, tooth erosion and wear.
Saliva plays a key role in maintaining oral health. It not only helps clean teeth, but also neutralizes the acidic environment in the mouth to prevent bacteria from growing.
The study, titled “Comparison of Dental Needs between Patients with Sj?gren’s Syndrome and the General Population: A Cross-sectional Study”, has been published in the Journal of Dentistry.
The research team conducted detailed oral examinations on 38 patients with Sj?gren’s syndrome and compared them with data from a large study covering 822 ordinary French adults.
Although patients with Sj?gren’s syndrome were older and more likely to be female than controls, they had more active habits in oral hygiene.
For example, up to 87% of patients visit the dentist regularly 1 to 2 times a year, and 95% of patients brush their teeth at least once a day.
Most people do not smoke and have healthy eating habits. However, they still show high rates of tooth lesions and wear.
The study pointed out that patients with Sj?gren’s syndrome have an average of 2.9 caries lesions, more than twice that of the general population (1.4).
The number of restored teeth is also higher, with an average of 14.4 teeth, while the control group has only 7.5 teeth. In addition, 86% of Sj?gren’s syndrome patients have significant tooth wear, while the proportion of the control group is 38%.
The research team believes that if patients have good oral hygiene, diet and medical behavior, but still have more caries and tooth wear, then salivary disorders may be the core cause. As saliva secretion decreases, the incidence of caries and tooth wear also increases.
The study also evaluated the impact of Sj?gren’s syndrome on patients’ oral health-related quality of life. Participants filled out a questionnaire covering chewing, speech difficulties, and the impact of oral problems on mood.
In almost all items, the scores of patients with Sj?gren’s syndrome were significantly lower than those of the general population, showing a clear negative impact.
The researchers emphasized that this finding highlights the importance of interdisciplinary medical care in the management of Sj?gren’s syndrome. They suggested that insufficient saliva secretion should be considered a key indicator for early identification of dental diseases.
In addition, the study also recommended further research on fluoride supplementation, baking soda mouthwash, etc. as possible effective preventive measures in the future.
However, the research team also reminded that due to the relatively small sample size, the results need to be interpreted with caution.
They pointed out that some patients have received treatment to increase saliva secretion, such as saliva substitutes or drugs such as pilocarpine (trade name such as Salagen).
Overall, the study showed that even if they maintain good oral hygiene habits, patients with Sj?gren’s syndrome still face a high risk of oral health and urgently need to be intervened and managed through more systematic diagnosis and treatment strategies.