[Sjögren's syndrome: diagnosis and systemic manifestations]

Sjögren's syndrome is an autoimmune exocrinopathy characterized by keratoconjunctivis sicca, xerostomia and immune-inflammatory systemic manifestations. The diagnosis is easy to establish when the patient presents with sicca complex as a main symptom, or recurring attacks of parotitis. However, it is way more complex when the disease begins with extraglandular features, such as non erosive polyarticular arthritis, Raynaud's phenomenon, peripheral or central nervous system involvement, kidney disease or interstitial pneumonary disease, or even vasculitis. In such circumstances, diagnosis is often delayed several years.