Secondary Sjögren's syndrome in a rheumatoid arthritis patient: A case report and review of literature

Abdulaziz Hussein; Awadia Gareeballah; Zuhal Y Hamd; Maisa Elzaki; Raga Ahmed Abouraida; Mohamed Abdalla Eltahir; Mariam Khogaly; Walaa Alsharif; Ali A Hamad

doi:10.1016/j.radcr.2024.07.196

Secondary Sjögren's syndrome in a rheumatoid arthritis patient: A case report and review of literature

Radiol Case Rep. 2024 Sep 4;19(11):5513-5518. doi: 10.1016/j.radcr.2024.07.196. eCollection 2024 Nov.

Authors

Abdulaziz Hussein¹, Awadia Gareeballah^{2

3}, Zuhal Y Hamd⁴, Maisa Elzaki^{2

3}, Raga Ahmed Abouraida⁵, Mohamed Abdalla Eltahir⁶, Mariam Khogaly⁷, Walaa Alsharif², Ali A Hamad⁸

Affiliations

¹ University of Medical Science and Technology, Graduate College, Khartoum, Sudan.
² Department of Diagnostic Radiology, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Taibah University, Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah, Saudi Arabia.
³ Faculty of Radiological Science and Medical Imaging, Alzaiem Alazhari University, Khartoum, Sudan.
⁴ Department of Radiological Sciences, College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, P.O.Box 84428, Riyadh 11671, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Department of Radiological Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Khalid University, Abha, Asir, Saudi Arabia.
⁶ Department of Medical Radiologic Technologies, Faculty of Allied Medical Sciences, Zarqa University, Zarqa, Jordan.
⁷ Department of Radiological Science, Al-Ghad International College of Applied Medical Science, Al-Madinah, Saudi Arabia.
⁸ Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Nile University, East Nile, Khartoum North, Khartoum, Sudan.

Abstract

Secondary Sjogren's syndrome (sSS) is a medical condition that occurs in individuals with autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and rheumatoid arthritis. It predominantly affects females rather than males. We present a case of a 32-year-old female with a 3-year history of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who presented to the internal medicine and rheumatology clinic with several complaints, including swelling and tenderness in her left jaw, dry mouth (xerostomia), irritated eyes (xerophthalmia), severe joint pain, and a decreased in saliva production. The blood tests demonstrate the presence of anti-SSA and anti-SSB autoantibodies and elevation of total leukocyte count (TLC), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, indicating inflammation. A high-frequency ultrasound confirmed the diagnosis of Secondary Sjogren's syndrome grade II, specifically affecting the left parotid gland (PG).

Keywords: Rheumatoid arthritis; Salivary glands; Sjögren's syndrome; Sonographic findings.

Publication types

Case Reports