Condition: Sjogren's syndrome
Common Dental Problems and Considerations for Provision of Dental Care:
- Xerostomia (dry mouth) resulting in increased risk for tooth decay.
- Saliva also provides a protective coating to mucosa, so there is increased sensitivity to poorly fitting dentures.
Recommendations for Dental Care:
- Regular dental recalls.
- Proper oral hygiene including use of daily applied topical fluoride.
- Diet low in sweets including soda pop.
- Make sure dentures are checked and adjusted regularly.
Dental Specialties:
- Typically Involved: none specifically
Recommended Resources
Guggenheimer J, Moore PA. Xerostomia: etiology, recognition and treatment. J Am Dent Assoc. 2003 Jan;134(1):61-9; quiz 118-9. PMID: 12555958
http://jada.ada.org/cgi/content/full/134/1/61
Hsu S, Dickinson D. A new approach to managing oral manifestations of Sjogren's syndrome and skin manifestations of lupus. J Biochem Mol Biol. 2006 May 31;39(3):229-39. PMID: 16756750 http://www.jbmb.or.kr/fulltext/jbmb/view.php?vol=39&page=229
Ramos-Casals M, Tzioufas AG, Font J. Primary Sjogren's syndrome: new clinical and therapeutic concepts. Ann Rheum Dis. 2005 Mar;64(3):347-54. Epub 2004 Oct 21. PMID: 15498797
http://ard.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/64/3/347
Thomas E, Hay EM, Hajeer A, Silman AJ. Sjogren's syndrome: a community-based study of prevalence and impact British Journal of Rheumatology 37(10):1069-1076. http://rheumatology.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/37/10/1069