Existing Treatments… or Lackthereof

Unfortunately, there are no cures for Sjogren's Syndrome. But, the good news is, it can be treated and controlled. By staying hydrated and following simple steps or even getting certain procedures done, the effects of Sjogren's can be mitigated and discomfort and harm can be reduced.
Some of the less common side affects may include fatigue, flexibility, and joint and muscle pain. These can be treated with simple routine exercises to get the blood pumping and reduce stiffness.
Other more common symptoms include dryness in the mouth, nose, and eyes. For mouth dryness, mouth hygiene is key. It may not prevent dry mouth completely, but it prevents infection and cavities in the event of excessive mouth dryness. Toothpastes and oral gels containing low doses of peroxide are available as over the counter medications. Make sure there are not high doses of peroxide… this will just increase dryness. These products also may have antibacterial action to reduce the severity of dental cavities over a long period of time.
Try sucking on candy and sipping water, or even chewing gum often to increase saliva production. Or simply use saliva stimulants, such as pilocarpine (Salagen) and cevimeline (Evoxac).
For dry nose, moistening nose drops are available for over-the-counter purchase at a convenient cost. Keeping the nasal passages damp is necessary not only to slow down progression of Sjogren’s, but also to avoid and protect against bacterial and viral diseases that usually-moist-nasal passages catch. Humidifiers may also help retain moisture, especially during the night as you sleep and air passages become more dry than usual.
Dry eyes can be helped by artificial tears and eyedrops and ointments. Also, reducing the time using the blowdrier may contribute. If you are a smoker, smoking dehydrates the body and blood vessels, so try to quit- or if that doesn’t help, reduce your smoking habits. If the dryness becomes more significant, your ophthalmologist can plug the tear duct closed so that tears cover the eye longer. Cyclosporine eyedrops (Restasis) are recently approved medicated drops that can reduce the inflammation of the tear glands improving their function. Signs of eye infection such as conjunctivitis, puss, or excessive redness or pain, need close attention to be paid to them. It may be more serious than it seems. A flare up may occur.
Common medications used to treat Sjogren’s include Plaquenil and Prednizone. Surgery is not a recommended solution for a patient with Sjogren’s Syndrome, (1) because it does not help anything and (2) because a person with Sjogren’s Syndrome typically takes medications or has naturally thinning blood. Proceding with surgery, blood clotting and healing may be difficult and sometimes fatal. A Patient with Sjogren’s Syndrome should always take extreme precaution when making decisions such as these.

(Mis)Diagnosing Sjogren's

Sjogren's Syndrome is an autoimmune disease that affects more than four million people in the United States, 90% of them being women, mostly between the ages of 35 and 45. Half of those who are diagnosed with Sjogren's Syndrome today experienced common symptoms such as dry mouth or dry eyes for three or more years before receiving an accurate diagnosis from a healthcare professional. While lack of patient-physician dialogue about symptoms is partly to blame, there are many other diseases that have very similar effects as Sjogren's. More attention to individual symptoms of patients as well as better research on the disease itself should be conducted.

In brief, the Sjogren's Syndrome illness causes the immune cells in the body to attack and destroy moisture-producing glands which results in dry mouth and eyes. Additional symptoms include fatigue, joint pain, digestive problems and overall dryness, and more severe symptoms can arise if the disease is not properly diagnosed and treated, such as blindness, loss of memory, loss of taste and smell, etc. There are two problems in the medical field today when it comes to Sjogren's Syndrome; one problem is that it is only treatable, not curable. The other problem is that it is often misdiagnosed as another illness because there are many other diseases that share similar characteristics to that of Sjogren's. This means that late-diagnosed patients have to live the rest of their lives with the already-progressed and un-curable disease. We need to descrease the percentage of patients misdiagnosed so that Sjogren's victims can be treated at an early stage (Sjogren's can be very serious, but not fatal).

The diseases that it can be confused with are often linked to Sjogren's, meaning they are often present along with it. (There are three types of Sjogren's: (1)sicca complex, which is just dry eyes and mouth, (2)primary, which encompasses all of the traditional symptoms, such as dryness and fatigue, and (3)secondary, which is a combination of primary along with another autoimmune disease). The illnesses that are similar to Sjogren's are: Fibromyalgia, Lupus, Arthritis (...and I am sure there are many more to add to the list).

In the event that you are diagnosed with any of these illnesses, or not diagnosed by any, and you feel the symptoms of dryness, do not try to combat the dryness with drinking more water.
Doing so can actually wash away existing saliva which contains beneficial components not found in water, and thereby make dry-mouth symptoms worse. If this is happening to you, tell your healthcare professional. Speaking up to your doctors is one of the most important ways to avoid misdiagnosis. You could have something more or less serious than you think...