Somatostatin receptor scintigraphy and gallium scintigraphy in patients with sarcoidosis. (41/1112)

Somatostatin receptor scintigraphy (SRS) has been shown to reveal sarcoidosis sites. The aim of this study was to prospectively compare SRS and gallium scintigraphy in the evaluation of pulmonary and extrapulmonary involvement in patients with proven sarcoidosis. METHODS: Eighteen patients with biopsy-proven sarcoidosis were included. Nine were or recently had been receiving steroid therapy at the time of the examination. Planar gallium scintigraphy (head, chest, abdomen, and pelvis) and thoracic SPECT were performed at 48-72 h after injection of a mean dose of 138 +/- 21 MBq 67Ga. Planar SRS and thoracic SPECT were performed at 4 and 24 h after injection of a mean dose of 148 +/- 17 MBq 111n-pentetreotide. RESULTS: Gallium scintigraphy found abnormalities in 16 of 18 patients (89%) and detected 64 of 99 clinically involved sites (65%). SRS found abnormalities in 18 of 18 patients and detected 82 of 99 clinically involved sites (83%). Of the 9 treated patients, gallium scintigraphy found abnormalities in 7 (78%), detecting 23 of 39 clinically involved sites (59%), whereas SRS found abnormalities in 9, detecting 32 of 39 clinically involved sites (82%). CONCLUSION: This study suggests that, compared with gallium scintigraphy, SRS appears to be accurate and contributes to a better evaluation of organ involvement in sarcoidosis patients, especially those treated with corticosteroids.  (+info)

Pulmonary sarcoidosis in a patient with essential thrombocythemia treated with interferon alpha: a short case report. (42/1112)

A patient with essential thrombocythemia was diagnosed with pulmonary sarcoidosis after interferon alpha therapy. Following interferon treatment the miliary pulmonary dissemination has appeared and after disruption of this therapy it resolved during two months. Few cases of sarcoidosis associated with interferon alpha treatment have been reported. These patients were treated for chronic myelogenous leukemia, chronic hepatitis C, and renal cell carcinoma. We report the first case of interferon-related sarcoidosis in an essential thrombocythemia patient.  (+info)

Lid swelling and diplopia as presenting features of orbital sarcoid. (43/1112)

Sarcoid is an idiopathic multisystem non-caseating granulomatous disease with protean clinical manifestations. In the eye, the common sites of involvement are the skin of eyelid, conjunctiva, uveal tract, retina, optic nerve and lacrimal gland.  (+info)

Neurosarcoidosis without systemic sarcoidosis--case report. (44/1112)

A 20-year-old male presented with symptoms of isolated neurosarcoidosis including epilepsy. Magnetic resonance imaging disclosed multiple enhanced right temporal and frontal lesions. Cerebrospinal fluid examination identified mild lymphocytic pleocytosis, and histological examination of a stereotactic brain biopsy specimen demonstrated noncaseating granulomas, so fungal or other inflammatory or granulomatous diseases were excluded. The diagnosis was cerebral sarcoidosis, despite the absence of systemic manifestations. Corticosteroid therapy improved his neurological state and radiological findings. Neurosarcoidosis is a well-recognized occurrence in systemic sarcoidosis, but diagnosis may be difficult in the absence of extracerebral manifestations.  (+info)

Sarcoidosis 2001. (45/1112)

In every decade, sarcoidosis makes a chameleon-like change so its profile needs to be updated. It was first recognised as a dermatological curiosity which evolved into a multisystem disorder with bone cysts, uveitis, and intrathoracic involvement. New dimensions were uncovered by biochemistry and immunology, bringing it still nearer the elusive enigma, namely the cause of sarcoidosis. Aetiology includes an understanding of a genetic predisposition and environmental trigger factors. What was left undone in the 20th century will become evident in the 21st century with more sophisticated technology. Likewise, conventional treatments of the past will be superseded by cytokines and other magic bullets of the millennium.  (+info)

Pleural effusion in sarcoidosis: a report of six cases. (46/1112)

Six (4 percent) of 150 patients with sarcoidosis had a pleural effusion. A review of the literature revealed seven more patients with pleural sarcoidosis. Analysis of the 13 patients reported so far did not reveal any clinical, radiological, or laboratory feature which may be of diagnostic significance. The diagnosis of pleural sarcoidosis was based on clinical or radiographic grounds and histological evidence of noncaseating granulomata. In three of the patients pleural fluid resolved spontaneously; the other three were treated with corticosteroids. It is suggested that pleural involvement in sarcoidosis, especially in Negroes, may be more frequent than is generally realized and the effusion may occur either at the time of initial presentation or later in the course of the disease.  (+info)

Discordant HHV8 detection in a young HIV-negative patient with Kaposi's sarcoma and sarcoidosis. (47/1112)

Human herpesvirus 8 (HHV8), which has been suggested as the causal agent of Kaposi's sarcoma (KS), has also been implicated in the pathogenesis of sarcoidosis. We describe a patient affected concomitantly by sarcoidosis and KS. HHV8 sequences were detected with PCR only on KS lesions, whereas sarcoid tissues did not harbor HHV8 DNA. Immune dysfunction related to sarcoidosis may have facilitated the oncogenic role of HHV8 and the development of KS.  (+info)

Sarcoid reaction in primary tumor of bronchogenic large cell carcinoma accompanied with massive necrosis. (48/1112)

A 49-year-old woman consulted our hospital for evaluation of a tumor with cavitation in the S6 segment of the right lung. She was given a diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculoma because percutaneous needle aspiration cytology revealed epithelioid cells with a background of necrosis. However, a diagnosis of large cell carcinoma with central necrosis (p-T2NOM0) was established by thoracoscopic lung biopsy six months later. Pathological findings of surgical resection specimens showed that epithelioid cell granulomas adjacent to the neoplasm had a sarcoid reaction and the necrosis was related to the rapidly growing tumor because there was no clinical evidence of systemic sarcoidosis and pulmonary mycobacterial or fungal infection. This is the first report in which sarcoid reactions were recognized in a primary large cell carcinoma.  (+info)