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This study describes the age-specific distribution of UWS flow rate in pSS patients and provides reference values for clinical use.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This retrospective cross-sectional study included pSS patients diagnosed per 2016 ACR\/EULAR criteria, stratified by age at diagnosis: early-onset (\u2264\u200935 years), middle-onset (35\u201365 years), and elderly-onset (\u2265\u200965 years). UWS flow rate was compared across groups. Linear regression assessed the age-UWS association, adjusting for sex, pre-diagnostic period, and anticholinergic use. For each age group, we calculated the 5th, 25th, 50th, 75th, and 95th percentiles of UWS flow rate as reference values.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Of 338 pSS patients (early-onset\u2009\u2264\u200935 years: 40; middle-onset 35\u201365 years: 193; elderly-onset\u2009\u2265\u200965 years: 105), UWS flow rate decreased significantly with age. Each 10-year increase was associated with a 0.04 mL\/min decrease (\u03b2= -0.04, 95% CI: -0.06 to -0.03,\n                      <jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u2009&lt;\u20090.001), independent of sex, pre-diagnostic period, and anticholinergic use. The median UWS flow rate was 0.29[0.20\u20130.47] mL\/min in the early-onset group, 0.20[0.10\u20130.39] mL\/min in the middle-onset group, and 0.14[0.05\u20130.22] mL\/min in the elderly-onset group, with significant differences between early- and middle-onset (\n                      <jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u2009=\u20090.013) and between middle- and elderly-onset (\n                      <jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u2009&lt;\u20090.001). Age-specific percentiles were established as reference values.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>UWS flow rate in pSS patients declines with age, independent of confounders. The age-specific reference values provided herein facilitate longitudinal monitoring and interpretation of UWS measurements in clinical practice.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1186\/s12903-026-09160-2","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,8]],"date-time":"2026-07-08T01:22:48Z","timestamp":1783473768000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/springer_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Age-specific reference values for unstimulated whole saliva flow rate in primary Sj\u00f6gren\u2019s syndrome: a cross-sectional study"],"prefix":"10.1186","volume":"26","author":[{"given":"Yang","family":"Yang","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xin-Xiang","family":"Huang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Dan-Li","family":"Meng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yi-Jia","family":"Huang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yan-Ting","family":"Yang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Rong-Xiu","family":"Huo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jin-Ying","family":"Lin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"297","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,8]]},"reference":[{"issue":"7","key":"9160_CR1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"426","DOI":"10.1038\/s41584-025-01268-z","volume":"21","author":"M Ramos-Casals","year":"2025","unstructured":"Ramos-Casals M, Baer AN, Brito-Zer\u00f3n MDP, et al. 2023 International Rome consensus for the nomenclature of Sj\u00f6gren disease. 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