Sjogren's syndrome is an autoimmune disease that has increased in occurrence in time around the world today. However, common as it is, it has not been given that much of importance by health sectors and gas not was taken seriously by the public. It seems that most of the people around the world lack awareness about this syndrome. As a result of this, with the number of people diagnosed with Sjogren's syndrome including the famous tennis superstar, Venus Williams, no treatment has been made available to cure the disease itself. Due to this lack of awareness, people who were diagnosed with Sjogren's syndrome are in the late stages already and some were only diagnosed incidentally due to the occurrence of the numbers of conditions making up this syndrome. Even in medical school, Sjogren's syndrome has not been emphasized considering the growing population of people affected by it around the world.
In the United States, an estimated 1.3 million people have Sjogren's syndrome. 60 percent of these people have not been registered to any of the support groups. There are over 60 SS support organizations around the US at present. The media and the internet are the organization's route to let people know that they are existing and invite those who have the disease to come out and be helped.
The social awareness of Sjogren's syndrome is very important because it will gather around the people that have the condition and would make it easier for the health groups to collect important data, information, and an estimated number of the population who have the condition and the epidemiology of the condition. These collected data can be used for research that would allow us to know more about the disease and to be able to find an away to cure, and prevent it. Most people with Sjogren's syndrome are confused and scared knowing that what they have has no definite treatment and the number of complications that the condition brings to the body.
The importance of social support for the people with Sjogren's syndrome is to gather those people affected with it and to allow them to talk and share their experiences with the disease. This will minimize their depression and would help them understand more of what they are going through. Sjogren's syndrome brings a lot of changes to the lives of which it struck. People can lose their jobs, their family, their friends and their future. A good social support would strengthen their rights and at the same time would give the society a clear education about the disease and what they can do to help those who have it. People with the condition should not be isolated and should not be left alone. They should be given a strong emotional, medical and social support in order to endure what they are going through and what they will be going through as they will be carrying the disease all over their lifetimes.
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a graduate of Medicine who is fond of writing articles and doing research in the fields of medicine and biology.