Biomarkers as a Confirmatory Diagnostic Tool for Sjögren’s Syndrome

Autoimmune diseases are characterized by abnormalities in the immune system. Sjögren’s syndrome is a systemic autoimmune disorder whose symptoms overlap with other autoimmune diseases, delaying the diagnosis process. On average, reaching a SS diagnose can take up to 2.8 years. Due to its challenging diagnosis, a family physician will integrate a team of specialists to help manage the disease and course of treatment. Autoantibodies are found in patients before the development of disease. However, autoantibodies cannot express the onset of Sjögren’s syndrome. Recent literature has indicated that biomarkers have the potential to be a confirmatory diagnostic tool for autoimmune diseases. Biomarkers have an important influence on the clinical decision-making processes involved in diagnosis, assessment of disease activity, allocation of treatment, and determining prognosis (Tektonidou & Ward, 2011). To our knowledge, there have been several biomarkers identified to pinpoint Sjögren’s syndrome. As such, the literature review will set out to explore the objective of exploring biomarkers and its association with diagnosing Sjögren’s syndrome. Specific aims: ● Identify biomarkers and its significance with diagnosing Sjögren’s Syndrome. ● Determine if biomarkers have the potential to improve diagnosis time of Sjögren’s Syndrome for early intervention and overall treatment. Keywords: Sjögren’s syndrome, autoantibodies, ANA titers, biomarkers, autoimmune disease, serology, chronic disease