Objective-To assess the recently proposed preliminary criteria for the classification of Sjogren's syndrome (SS) in a multicentre European study of a new series of clinically defined cases. Methods-The criteria included six items: I = ocular symptoms; II = oral symptoms; II = evidence of keratoconjunctivitis sicca; IV = focal sialoadenitis by minor salivary gland biopsy; V = instrumental evidence of salivary gland involvement; VI = presence of autoantibodies.

Objectives-To estimate the incidence of adult Still's disease (ASD) and to specify, if possible, associated factors. Methods-A retrospective study of the populations of the Brittany and Loire regions in west France was made from 1 January 1982 to 31 December 1991. All internal medicine and rheumatology practitioners of these regions were consulted. Results-Sixty-two (62) cases were reported (93% response). The disease incidence calculated over five years was 0-16 per 100 000 inhabitants in the study population. There was no sex bias (sex ratio 1-06 in ASD v 1-05 in the overall population. The mean age of the study population was 36 years, with two peaks of distribution at 15-25 and 36-45 years.

Objective. To identify B cell subpopulations participating in the lymphocyte infiltrate of salivary glands from patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome. A special emphasis was placed on those B lymphocytes included in the ectopic germinal centers (GCs).Methods. The presence of B cells in salivary glands and their polyclonality were ascertained by phenotyping and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction in salivary gland samples from 18 patients. Their phenotype was thoroughly analyzed using a number of double-staining combinations. The results obtained in tissue sections were confirmed by fluorescence-activated cell sorting analysis of B cells eluted from salivary glands, and these findings were compared with those in tonsils.Results. Memory-type B cells were defined as CD20؉,CD27؉ and were seen in all specimens, whereas GCs were found in only 7 specimens. Furthermore, B cells found in these GCs lacked certain characteristics of centroblasts and centrocytes. Instead,

ObjectiveTo correlate the periodontal status of 15 patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome (SS) with their salivary levels of BAFF.MethodsThe periodontal status of 15 patients who fulfilled the criteria for primary SS was compared with that of 15 controls with xerostomia who did not fulfill the criteria for primary SS but had similar symptoms of dry mouth. The level of BAFF was measured in paired samples of saliva and serum using in‐house enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assays. Periodontitis was assessed by the plaque index, the modified gingival index, the papillary bleeding index, and the periodontal pocket depth.ResultsNotwithstanding the better oral hygiene practices of the patients with primary SS compared with those of the xerostomia controls and the subsequent reduction of their plaque index scores, complications of periodontitis, such as bleeding, gingival hypertrophy, and periodontal pockets, were not improved. This failure to ameliorate the complications of periodontitis in patients with primary SS was associated with high levels of BAFF in their saliva compared with the levels in xerostomia controls (7.4 ± 2.1 versus 1.0 ± 0.4 ng/ml [P < 0.002]). The levels of BAFF in saliva did not correlate with the levels in sera but did correlate with the periodontal pocket depth (P < 0.002).ConclusionThese findings are similar to the bone resorption observed in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. They suggest that the known effect of B cells in periodontitis would be partly mediated by salivary BAFF in patients with primary SS.

Thyroid dysfunction is frequent in pSS patients, and those prone to develop thyroid disorders are identified by thyroid-related autoantibodies, or by rheumatoid factor and anti-Ro/SSA activity.