Sarcoidosis

The Basics

Written by the doctors and editors at UpToDate пїЅ пїЅ

What is sarcoidosis? " пїЅ Sarcoidosis is a disorder that causes clusters of abnormal tissue to form in the body. These clusters are called "granulomas. " пїЅ If many granulomas form in an organ, they can keep the organ from working normally. For example, granulomas can form in the lungs and cause breathing problems. пїЅ пїЅ

Sarcoidosis can affect many different organs. Often it affects the lungs, but it can also affect the skin, eyes, nose, and lots of other body parts. пїЅ пїЅ

What are the symptoms of sarcoidosis? " пїЅ Sarcoidosis causes different symptoms depending on which body part it affects. Often the symptoms are mild and go away on their own. пїЅ пїЅ

When it affects the lungs, sarcoidosis can cause: пїЅ пїЅ

Cough
Trouble breathing
Chest pain
Tiredness or weakness
Fever
Weight loss

When it affects the skin, sarcoidosis can cause a mild rash or painful bumps. Sometimes the rash and bumps go away completely. Other times, they leave a scar. пїЅ пїЅ

Sometimes, sarcoidosis causes no symptoms even though it is damaging certain organs. For this reason, people with sarcoidosis might need to have tests to check for organ damage. пїЅ пїЅ

How do I know if I have sarcoidosis? " пїЅ There is no single "test " пїЅ that can tell if you have sarcoidosis. To diagnose it, doctors and nurses look at: пїЅ пїЅ

Your symptoms and your physical exam
X-rays (or special X-rays called CT scans)
Lab work on tissue taken from your body (called a biopsy)
Tests that can rule out other causes of your condition

How is sarcoidosis treated? " пїЅ Doctors and nurses do not know what causes sarcoidosis, so they do not have a treatment to cure it. Luckily, they do have ways to treat its symptoms. Even so, if your symptoms are mild, you might not need treatment. пїЅ пїЅ

Medicines called steroids can relieve the symptoms of sarcoidosis and prevent some of the damage it can cause. These steroid medicines are not the kind that athletes take to build up muscle. These steroids reduce swelling and shrink the granulomas caused by sarcoidosis. Sometimes, people can use skin creams, eye drops, and inhalers that have steroids in them. Other times, if their symptoms are severe, they take steroid pills. пїЅ пїЅ

Even though steroid pills can help with the problems caused by sarcoidosis, they can also cause problems of their own. For instance, steroids can cause weight gain and mood swings, and make diabetes worse. For this reason, doctors and nurses try to take people off steroids as soon as possible. пїЅ пїЅ

Medicines besides steroids can also help with sarcoidosis. Doctors and nurses usually use these medicines only in people who cannot take steroids or who do not get better with steroids. пїЅ пїЅ

How will sarcoidosis affect my life? " пїЅ Sarcoidosis usually goes away on its own or does not get worse. Sometimes it does get worse and can spread to many organs. Even so, people do not usually die from sarcoidosis. пїЅ пїЅ

All topics are updated as new evidence becomes available and our peer review process is complete. пїЅ пїЅ

This topic retrieved from UpToDate on: Nov 04, 2014. пїЅ пїЅ

Topic 15477 Version 3.0 пїЅ пїЅ

Release: 22.8 - C22.206 пїЅ пїЅ

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Sarcoidosis

The Basics

Consumer Information Use and Disclaimer

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