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Targeted clinical strategies are needed for patients with Sjögren’s disease (SD) at greater risk for mortality, according to a study published in The Journal of Rheumatology. The prospective, multicenter study analyzed mortality risk in 314 patients with SD from the SjögrenSER cohort, diagnosed using the 2002 American-European Consensus Group criteria. The researchers collected data on systemic manifestations, serological markers, disease activity, and mortality over a median follow-up of 9.5 years. The study reported a 70% increased mortality risk in the SD cohort compared with the general population, with a standardized mortality ratio of 1.7. The primary causes of death were infections (35.7%), malignancies (23.8%), and cardiovascular disease (7.1%). Cox proportional hazards models identified older age (HR, 1.11 per year), C4 hypocomplementemia (HR, 3.75), elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate (HR, 1.01), history of heart failure (HR, 4.24), and pulmonary involvement (HR, 3.31) as independent mortality predictors.