Sjögren’s Disease and Mental Health Burden
SJÖGREN’S disease may carry a substantial psychological burden, with depression, anxiety, fatigue, and brain fog affecting care.
A narrative review has highlighted the psychological and cognitive burden of Sjögren’s disease, reinforcing that the condition extends well beyond dry eyes, dry mouth, and fatigue. The review synthesized evidence on depression, anxiety, cognitive function, personality traits, and quality of life in adults with Sjögren’s disease, drawing on literature from PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane through June 2025.
Depressive symptoms were frequently reported, affecting roughly one third to nearly half of patients across included studies. Anxiety symptoms were also common, reported by about one third of patients. These findings point to a clinically relevant mental health burden that may be missed when disease assessment focuses mainly on sicca symptoms or objective inflammatory markers.
Brain Fog and Cognitive Dysfunction in Sjögren’s Disease
Cognitive complaints were also frequently described in Sjögren’s disease, including difficulties with memory, attention, and executive function. These symptoms, often described by patients as brain fog, appeared alongside severe fatigue and sleep disturbance, creating a wider neuropsychological burden that may impair daily functioning and treatment adherence.
The review also emphasized that quality of life is consistently reduced in Sjögren’s disease. Importantly, this reduction was driven largely by fatigue and emotional distress rather than classic disease activity alone. This disconnect may help explain why patients can report substantial impairment even when conventional clinical measures do not fully capture symptom severity.
Clinical Care Must Look Beyond Dryness
Potential neuroimmune mechanisms may link systemic inflammation with affective and cognitive symptoms. Chronic inflammatory signaling, including cytokines such as IL-6 and TNF-α, may contribute to depression, anxiety, cognitive dysfunction, and fatigue, although the evidence remains heterogeneous.
Most available studies were cross sectional, with variability in study design, diagnostic criteria, and assessment tools. Even so, the review supports a practical clinical message: psychological symptoms and cognitive complaints should be considered part of the disease burden in Sjögren’s disease. Routine screening, multidisciplinary care, and psychological support may improve wellbeing, adherence, and overall quality of life for affected patients.
Reference
Neagu AE et al. Beyond Dryness: Mapping the Psychological and Cognitive Burden in Sjögren’s Disease—A Narrative Review. J Clin Med. 2026;15(8):2857.
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