OBJECTIVE: To assess the prevalence of parotid gland swelling (PGS), and its association with features of Sjögren\'s syndrome (SS) and other causes of sialadenosis in a Latin-American cohort of primary SS.
METHODS: We included 668 patients from Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, and Paraguay. We retrospectively registered demographics, disease duration, oral/ocular symptoms, serology and scored the basal ESSDAI. We defined PGS as a recurrent or persistent increase of volume of any parotid glands during adulthood (self-reported and/or physical examination). We registered the presence of diabetes mellitus, dyslipidaemia, body mass index, and alcohol consumption. We used logistic regression analysis reporting OR and 95% CI.
RESULTS: PGS was present in 242 patients (36.2%): 78 previous to SS diagnosis, 86 concomitantly, 73 during follow-up, and five unknown. At the multivariate analysis, PGS was associated with RF (OR 2.47, 95% CI 1.1-6.5, p= 0.0001), basal articular ESSDAI domain (OR 1.63, 95% CI 1.01-2.6, p= 0.04), and alcohol consumption (OR 2.42, 95% CI 1.41-4-15). Patients with PGS during the follow-up had a higher prevalence of alcohol consumption (45.3%) compared with the remaining PGS cases (26.8%; OR 2.41 95% CI 1.2-4.7), or patients without parotid gland swelling (15.6%; OR 3.8 95% CI 1.7-8.2) in all the adjusted models.
CONCLUSIONS: PGS generally precedes or presents concomitantly with SS diagnosis, and is related to RF and articular activity. Alcohol consumption is an additional factor in PGS, especially during follow-up. The meaning of this last finding as well as its prognostic implications remains to be elucidated and deserves further evaluation in prospective studies.