Sicca syndrome--diagnostic perplexities.

Patients presenting with xerostomia and other signs of Sjogren's syndrome pose diagnostic problems. Many other underlying diseases cause these symptoms and a systematic evaluation is necessary to make an accurate diagnostic assessment. There are immunological tests and histological studies which help make them distinctive and are herein outlined. Patients with this information presenting with sicca syndrome, therefore, can be more accurately assessed and have better treatment regimens instituted. The "sicca syndrome," which is a disorder discussed primarily in the rheumatology literature, is rarely a topic in the otolaryngology literature, although there are often presenting symptoms of this problem in the head and neck. This paper reviews this problem, discusses the confusion regarding terminology, and outlines a practical method of diagnosis for the clinician.