[Symptoms in women with Sjogren's syndrome]

Abstract

More knowledge about symptom experience is needed for diagnosing Sjögren's disease at an early stage of disease development. We have performed a qualitative study based on group interview with eight women with Sjögren's disease. The women presented with several different symptoms. They all described weariness, fatigue, sicca symptoms, various pains, hypersensitivity and organ manifestations in the same manner. Some of the symptoms had a dramatic impact on their life activities. The study revealed new descriptions of previously known symptoms and descriptions of previously unfamiliar symptoms. The results of the study may supplement the existing criteria of Sjögren's disease and provide new hypotheses about pathogenetic mechanisms related to chest pain, abdominal pain and facial pain in patients with Sjögren's disease.