A RELIABLE TECHNIQUE FOR MINOR SALIVARY GLAND BIOPSY: A SAFE AND EFFECTIVE METHOD FOR DIAGNOSING SJÖGREN'S SYNDROME IN SERONEGATIVE PATIENTS
1İzmir Bakırçay Üniversitesi Çiğli Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, KBB, İzmir, Türkiye Aims: To describe a safe and standardized technique for performing minor salivary gland biopsy and to highlight its diagnostic value in patients with seronegative Sjögren's syndrome.Material and Methods: Medical records of 319 patients who presented to the Rheumatology Clinic at Izmir Bakircay University Faculty of Medicine Cigli Training and Research Hospital between January 2020 and July 2024 were retrospectively reviewed. These patients had undergone serological testing for suspected SS and were subsequently referred to the ENT Department for minor salivary gland biopsy.
Results: Among the patients, 43 (13.4%) had negative serological results but exhibited MSGB scores of 3 or higher. SS was directly diagnosed in 92 patients (28.8%) based on Chisholm-Mason scores of 3 or 4. Additionally, some of the 167 patients (52.3%) with scores of 1 or 2 were diagnosed with SS based on supplementary clinical findings, leading to the initiation of treatment. MSGB findings contributed to the diagnosis in more than half of the suspected SS cases. Follow-up examinations one month post-biopsy revealed that most patients did not experience adverse symptoms such as pain, numbness, burning, tingling, or swelling.
Conclusion: Our study underscores the critical role of MSGB in diagnosing Sjögren's syndrome, particularly in seronegative patients. Given its safety and importance, MSGB remains a reliable and essential method for identifying SS.
Keywords : Sjögren's syndrome, minor salivary gland biopsy, complications