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Multiple sialolithiasis in the parotid gland with Sjögren's syndrome and its sonographic findings--report of 3 cases.

Shimizu M, Yoshiura K, Nakayama E, Kanda S, Nakamura S, Ohyama Y, Nakamura N

Dept. of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, Faculty of Dental Science, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan. shimizu@rad.dent.kyushu-u.ac.jp

We present 3 cases of Sjögren's syndrome in which multiple sialolithiasis were observed in the parenchyma of the parotid gland. The sonographic examinations showed microliths that were observed as hyperechoic spots. Some of the microliths were accompanied with comet sign, however most of them showed no particular posterior echoes. None of them showed acoustic shadows, which are normally observed in cases with sialolithiasis. We were able to prove that some of the hyperechoic spots observed sonographically in patients with severe Sjögren's syndrome were microliths. Although these multiple microliths are rarely detected, they may exist potentially in higher frequency in patients with severe Sjögren's syndrome.

Published 15 December 2004 in Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol Endod, 99(1): 85-92.
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