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Sarcoidosis is a rare, chronic, autoimmune disease that is characterized by the formation
of small lumps (also called nodules or granulomas) in the tissues, especially in the lymph
nodes, lungs, liver, eyes, bones, skin, joints, kidneys, and spleen.
Sarcoidosis causes inflammation of the body's tissues. Although inflammation (pain, redness, swelling, etc.) is a normal bodily response to injury, patients with sarcoidosis develop nodules in the affected areas as a result of the inflammation. Sarcoidosis occurs in the lymph nodes in the hilar regions of the lungs in 75 to 90 percent of patients, and in the lungs themselves in 50 percent of patients; however, no link between this condition and smoking has been established, as it occurs in both smokers and nonsmokers. In fact, anyone can develop this disorder, as it occurs in both men and women of all ages and in all parts of the world. Sarcoidosis was first described by a London surgeon-dermatologist, Dr. Jonathan Hutchinson, in 1877. The doctor described the findings of a 50 year-old man who had large purple skin plaques on the hands and feet and a 64-year-old woman with large purple patches on her face and arms. In 1889, Norwegian dermatologist Dr. Cesar Boeck named the process "multiple benign sarcoid of the skin". He also showed that many patients also had sarcoid in the lymph nodes and lungs. Today, the cause of this condition is still not known. Sarcoidosis is not contagious, nor has it been proven to be an inherited disease. It has been theorized that this disease occurs when an antigen exposure causes dysfunction of the lung immune response, which results in a T-lymphocyte immunity that promotes lung inflammation and granulomas. Sarcoidosis is most often diagnosed by obtaining biopsies of affected organs and by ruling out other granulomatous diseases such as tuberculosis, and other diseases that can cause lymph node enlargement. In over 70 percent of all patients the disease goes away by itself within two years of its initial onset without medical treatment. In some cases, however, the disease does not go into remission, and long-term medical treatment is required. |
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