Sarcoidosis Flashcards
Introduction
Multisystem granulomatous disease of unknown aetiology
Mainly skin, eyes, lungs, mediastinal and peripheral lymph nodes
Skin lesions may be disfiguring —> strong psychosocial impact
One of the great imitators - variable cutaneous manifestations
Specific (histopathologically display sarcoidosis granulomas) vs non-specific lesions
Women > men
African Americans/Indians - more severe and chronic disease
Caucasians - asymptomatic disease, Lofgren syndrome
Associated diseases
Increased risk of lymphoproliferative disease I.e. Hodgkin lymphoma
Concomitant autoimmune disease _
- Sjogren syndrome
- systemic sclerosis
- RA
- vasculitis
- psoriasis
- autoimmune chronic hepatitis
- primary biliary cirrhosis
- autoimmune thyroid disease esp Graves disease
Systemic manifestations
Lung
Extrapulmonary -
- Eye
- Reticuloendothelial (lymph nodes, spleen, bone marrow)
- Liver
- MSK
- Heart
- Other I.e. upper respiratory tract, parotid, hypercalcaemia/hypercalciuria, renal, GI, genital, endocrine
Acute/subacute (weeks/few months) vs insidious onset (several months)
Acute/subacute = good prognosis, Mild constitutional symptoms -
- Fatigue
- Malaise
- Anorexia
- Weight loss
- Low grade fever
- Arthralgia
- Respiratory symptoms
Insidious = chronic course + permanent damage, respiratory complaints w/o constitutional symptoms/symptoms referable to organs other than the lung
Lung sarcoidosis
90% of cases
Dry cough, SOB on exercise vs asymptomatic
Grading by CXR stages -
0 - normal
I - bilateral hilar lymphadenopathy w/o lung involvement
II - bilateral hilar lymphadenopathy w/ lung involvement
III - lung involvement w/o bilateral hilar lymphadenopathy (less likely to resolve)
Advanced cases - pulmonary HTN, fibrosis, destruction/obliteration lung vasculature, chronic hypoxaemia
Eye sarcoidosis
May be asymptomatic —> refer to Opthal for all patients for slit lamp and ophthalmoscope exam
Anterior/posterior uveitis Chorioretinitis Periphlebitis Papilloedema Retinal haemorrhage Keratoconjunctivitis sicca Lacrimal gland involvement
Late complications in untreated cases -
Secondary glaucoma
Cataract
Blindness
Reticuloendothelial sarcoidosis
Peripheral LN - cervical, supraclavicular, axillary, inguinal
Intrathoracic LN
Mesenteric LN
Retroperitoneal LN
Spleen - hypersplenism, pancytopenia
Bone marrow (rare)
Liver sarcoidosis
Mild hepatomegaly + mild cholestasis
Severe chronic cholestasis syndrome (rare)
Portal HTN (rare)
Budd-Chiari syndrome (rare)
Neurosarcodosis
Cranial nerve involvement —> facial paralysis (common)
Aseptic meningitis Seizures Pyramidal tract Optic nerve dysfunction Papilloedema Hypothalamic/pituitary lesions —> diabetes insipidus, hypopituitarism Cognitive impairment
MSK sarcoidosis
Transient vs chronic polyarthralgias (arthritis uncommon)
Asymptomatic muscle involvement (symptomatic diffuse/nodular myopathy rare)
Osteolytic bone lesions on hands and feet (uncommon)
Heart sarcoidosis
Arrhythmias (supraventricular, ventricular)
Complete heart block
Sudden death
Congestive heart failure
Cor pulmonale (secondary to chronic pulmonary fibrosis)
Ix - cardiac MRI/PET scan
Other organ sarcoidosis
Upper respiratory tract —> nasal stuffiness
Parotid - bilateral parotid enlargement, xerostomia
Transient/persistent hypercalcemia and hypercalciuria due to increased production of 1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D by granulomas —> nephrocalcinosis, nephrolithiasis
Renal - interstitial lymphocytic and granulomatous nephritis
Course/prognosis
Acute sarcoidosis resolves spontaneously without sequelae within 2-5 years
Lofgren syndrome -
excellent prognosis
Recurrence after spontaneous remission
Chronic progressive sarcoidosis sometimes assoc with irreversible fibrotic changes
Pregnancy not C/I except in severe chronic disease
Relapse post partum
Specific lesions (histopathologically display sarcoidosis granulomas)
Maculopapules Nodules and Plaques Lupus pernio Scar sarcoidosis Subcutaneous sarcoidosis
Red-brown/red-violaceous in colour
Multiple
Asymptomatic
Diascopy - subtle brown-yellow/apple jelly colour
Non-specific lesions
Erythema nodosum
Maculopapular sarcoidosis
Most common specific lesion
Transient, appear to herald onset of sarcoidosis
Yellow-brown/red-brown
No clinically evident epidermal change
Face - mainly periorbital, nasolabial folds
Other sites also including mucous membranes
Papular sarcoidosis of the knees - frequently with linear arrangement and Lichenoid appearance, polarisable foreign bodies in most biopsies, transient
Resolve spontaneously or < 2yrs with treatment without significant scarring (favourable prognosis)
Commonly assoc with acute systemic sarcoidosis - hilar LN, peripheral LN, erythema nodosum, acute uveitis, parotid enlargement
DDx - Xanthelasma Rosacea Secondary syphilis LE Trichoepithelioma Sebaceous adenoma Syringoma GA Lichen nitidus
Nodular and plaque sarcoidosis
Multiple round/oval infiltrated reddish-brown plaques
Thicker, more indurated, persistent than papules
Sometimes mamillated (rounded protuberances)
Tend to recur after treatment
Can leave permanent scarring when lesions resolve
Assoc with chronic systemic sarcoidosis - pulmonary fibrosis, peripheral LN, splenomegaly, chronic uveitis
Disease activity >2 yrs
DDx - Lupus vulgaris NLD GA Leprosy Morphoea DLE Leishmaniasis