Sjögren’s syndrome (SjS) is a chronic autoimmune disorder characterized by lymphocytic infiltration of the exocrine glands, which can also affect the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, hepatobiliary system, and pancreatic exocrine tissues. Approximately one-third of patients experience GI-related symptoms, with xerostomia, dysphagia, dyspepsia, and atrophic gastritis being the most commonly reported manifestations. SjS is also associated with autoimmune liver diseases, including autoimmune hepatitis and primary biliary cholangitis. Pancreatic involvement is less frequent, but may present as autoimmune pancreatitis or exocrine pancreatic insufficiency. The complexity of SjS and the variety of its manifestations underscore the importance of a multidisciplinary management approach, where collaboration among healthcare professionals is crucial for optimising patient outcomes.

Background/Objectives: Primary Sjögren’s disease is a systemic autoimmune disease characterized by chronic inflammation of exocrine glands and heterogeneous clinical manifestations. There remains a need for objective, non-invasive biomarkers that reflect local glandular involvement and disease-related immune activity. Methods: This observational cross-sectional case–control study included 34 patients fulfilling the 2016 ACR/EULAR classification criteria for primary Sjögren’s disease and 34 healthy controls between December 2024 and February 2025. Unstimulated whole-saliva samples were collected in the morning using the passive drool method, and salivary galectin-9 concentrations were measured via the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Disease activity and symptom burden were assessed using validated indices, and receiver operating characteristic analysis was performed to evaluate discriminatory performance. Results: Salivary galectin-9 levels were significantly higher in patients with primary Sjögren’s disease compared with healthy controls. However, no significant associations were observed between salivary galectin-9 levels and disease activity scores after correction for multiple comparisons, nor with patient-reported symptoms, autoantibody profiles, Schirmer test results, or minor salivary gland biopsy findings. Salivary galectin-9 demonstrated limited discriminative ability between patients and controls. Conclusions: Salivary galectin-9 levels were elevated in primary Sjögren’s disease and may be associated with local glandular immune processes. Further prospective studies are needed to determine their clinical relevance.

Background/Objectives: The relationship between large-scale natural disasters and antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV) remains uncertain. This study compared crude case numbers, diagnostic patterns, and clinical characteristics of newly diagnosed AAV before and after the 6 February 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquakes in Türkiye. Methods: This multicenter retrospective study included patients newly diagnosed with AAV between 6 February 2020 and 5 February 2026 at five tertiary referral centers in four provinces heavily affected by the earthquakes. Equal 36-month pre- and post-earthquake periods were compared. Demographics, AAV subtype, ANCA serology, biopsy-confirmed diagnosis, organ involvement, Birmingham Vasculitis Activity Score (BVAS), laboratory findings, treatments, and recorded outcomes were evaluated. Results: A total of 127 patients were included: 58 (45.7%) before and 69 (54.3%) after the earthquakes. The crude number of cases was numerically higher after the earthquakes, but the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.375). AAV subtype, ANCA serology, organ involvement, BVAS, inflammatory markers, renal function, and most laboratory findings were comparable. Biopsy-confirmed diagnoses were significantly less frequent in the post-earthquake period than in the pre-earthquake period (46.4% vs. 70.7%, p = 0.010). Treatment patterns were comparable between the two periods. Although the crude proportions of recorded outcomes did not differ significantly, these comparisons were limited by the substantially shorter follow-up duration in the post-earthquake group and should not be interpreted as evidence of comparable prognosis. Conclusions: In major tertiary referral centers serving earthquake-affected provinces, crude AAV case numbers and baseline clinical phenotypes were largely comparable before and after the earthquakes. These crude case numbers should not be interpreted as incidence estimates, because reliable population denominators were unavailable after the earthquakes. The significant reduction in biopsy-confirmed diagnoses may reflect post-disaster changes in diagnostic healthcare pathways. These real-world data provide an important regional overview of newly diagnosed AAV after a major natural disaster.