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Sarcoidosis - Health Hot Line
Ebony, March, 2004
SARCOIDOSIS is an inflammatory disease that can attack any organ of the body but most frequently is found in the lungs. Pulmonary sarcoidosis can decrease the amount of air in the lungs and can cause abnormal lung stiffness. Small areas of inflamed cells, called granulomas, appear on the walls of air sacs in the lungs or on the walls of the breathing tubes in the lungs. They also appear in the lymph nodes in the chest, causing the lymph nodes to enlarge.
Doctors say the illness is more common (and more severe) among African-Americans and northern Europeans. And it is a disease that more often affects young adults between the ages of 20 and 40, although a few persons past 60 have contracted it. In the U.S., the prevalence of sarcoidosis is eight times greater in African-Americans than in Whites. And for some particular reason, African-American women are affected twice as often as Black men.
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It is not clear what actually causes sarcoidosis. Some scientists think it is a disorder of the immune system, where the body's natural defense system malfunctions. Other medical professionals believe sarcoidosis may result from a respiratory infection caused by a virus, while still others suspect that exposure to toxins or allergens in the environment are to blame.
Patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis have a dry cough, shortness of breath and mild chest pain. Symptoms outside the lungs include a scaly rash, red bumps on the legs, fever, soreness of the eyes and pain and swelling of the ankles. Because general symptoms--including fatigue, weakness, fever and weight loss--are common in other lung diseases, diagnosis may be difficult.
In at least half the cases, sarcoidosis appears briefly and heals naturally. Oftentimes, the patient doesn't even know that he or she has contracted the disease. Doctors say about 20 to 30 percent of pulmonary sarcoidosis patients suffer some form of lung damage. And for a small percentage of patients, sarcoidosis can become chronic and last many years. Corticosteroids are often used to suppress pain and fever, and if not treated properly, sarcoidosis can lead to death.
COPYRIGHT 2004 Johnson Publishing Co.
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