Protein‐losing gastroenteropathy with severe hypoalbuminemia associated with Sjögren’s syndrome: A case report and review of the literature

A 30‐year‐old man with severe hypoalbuminemia (serum albumin: 0.9 g/dL) was admitted with severe bilateral leg edema and unilateral pleural effusion. Serum anti‐SS‐A and SS‐B antibody levels were abnormally elevated, and his symptoms fulfilled the diagnostic criteria for Sjogren's syndrome. Technetium‐99m albumin scintigraphy revealed protein leakage from a large area of the small intestine. Immunohistochemistry revealed perivascular deposition of C1q, C3d, and immunoglobulin G in the duodenal mucosa. The patient was diagnosed with protein‐losing gastroenteropathy associated with Sjogren's syndrome. Within 2 months of treatment with oral prednisolone and mycophenolate mofetil, the clinical symptoms of hypoalbuminemia and Sjogren's syndrome disappeared completely.