Fulvio Giovanni, Izzetti Rossana, Aringhieri Giacomo, Donati Valentina, Ferro Francesco, Gabbriellini Giovanna, Mosca Marta, Baldini Chiara
Rheumatology Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy.
Department of Clinical and Translational Science, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy.
Diagnostics (Basel). 2023 Aug 26;13(17):2771. doi: 10.3390/diagnostics13172771.
Sjögren's Disease (SjD) is a chronic autoimmune disorder that affects the salivary and lacrimal glands, leading to xerostomia and xerophthalmia. Ultrasonography of Major Salivary Glands (SGUS) is a well-established tool for the identification of the salivary glands' abnormalities in SjD. Recently, a growing interest has arisen in the assessment of the other exocrine glands with ultrasonography: lacrimal glands (LGUS) and labial salivary glands (LSGUS). The objective of this study is to explore the practical applications of ultra-high frequency ultrasound (UHFUS) in the assessment of lacrimal glands and labial salivary glands. Indeed, UHFUS, with its improved spatial resolution compared to conventional ultrasonography, allows for the evaluation of microscopic structures and has been successfully applied in various medical fields. In lacrimal glands, conventional high-frequency ultrasound (HFUS) can detect characteristic inflammatory changes, atrophic alterations, blood flow patterns, and neoplastic lesions associated with SjD. However, sometimes it is challenging to identify lacrimal glands characteristics, thus making UHFUS a promising tool. Regarding labial salivary glands, limited research is available with conventional HFUS, but UHFUS proves to be a good tool to evaluate glandular inhomogeneity and to guide labial salivary glands biopsy. The comprehensive understanding of organ involvement facilitated by UHFUS may significantly improve the management of SjD patients.
干燥综合征（SjD）是一种慢性自身免疫性疾病，会影响唾液腺和泪腺，导致口干症和干眼症。大唾液腺超声检查（SGUS）是一种成熟的用于识别干燥综合征中唾液腺异常的工具。最近，人们对用超声检查评估其他外分泌腺（泪腺（LGUS）和唇唾液腺（LSGUS））的兴趣日益浓厚。本研究的目的是探讨超高频率超声（UHFUS）在评估泪腺和唇唾液腺中的实际应用。事实上，与传统超声相比，UHFUS具有更高的空间分辨率，能够评估微观结构，并已成功应用于各个医学领域。在泪腺中，传统高频超声（HFUS）可以检测到与干燥综合征相关的特征性炎症变化、萎缩性改变、血流模式和肿瘤性病变。然而，有时识别泪腺特征具有挑战性，因此UHFUS成为一种有前景的工具。关于唇唾液腺，传统HFUS的相关研究有限，但UHFUS被证明是评估腺体不均匀性和指导唇唾液腺活检的良好工具。UHFUS有助于全面了解器官受累情况，可能会显著改善干燥综合征患者的管理。
