Oral health-related quality of life in Sjögren's disease patients with unstimulated whole salivary flows ≥0.1 ml/min for whom no therapeutic approaches are provided in the EULAR recommendations.

OBJECTIVES

To assess the oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in Sjögren's disease (SjD) patients with unstimulated whole salivary flow (UWSF) ≥0.1 ml/min for whom no preferred therapeutic approaches are provided in the European League Against Rheumatism recommendations.

METHODS

Thirty-four SjD patients and 23 controls were enrolled in this study. The UWSF was measured using the spitting method. OHRQoL was quantitatively evaluated using the short-form Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14).

RESULTS

In SjD patients, 26 (76.5%) had a UWSF <0.1 ml/min, and 8 (23.5%) had ≥0.1 ml/min. The OHIP-14 scores were significantly higher in both the ≥0.1 and <0.1 ml/min groups than in the non-SjD group. Among the OHIP-14 questions, the ≥0.1 ml/min group scored significantly higher than the non-SjD group for 'uncomfortable to eat foods', 'self-conscious', 'diet unsatisfactory', 'difficult to relax', 'felt life less satisfying', and 'unable to function'.

CONCLUSIONS

Even with UWSF ≥0.1 ml/min, SjD patients had lower OHRQoL. The normal range of salivary flow rates is wide, exhibiting high interindividual variability. Even if the salivary flow rate is preserved in a single measurement, the possibility of having oral dryness due to a decrease in the salivary flow rate from the normal value for that patient should be considered.