Pulmonary Sarcoidosis - Radiological Evaluation

Abstract

Background: Sarcoidosis is a multisystem inflammatory disease of unknown etiology that predominantly affects the lungs and intrathoracic lymph nodes. Sarcoidosis is manifested by the presence of noncaseating granulomas (NCGs) in affected organ tissues. It is characterized by a seemingly exaggerated immune response against a difficult–to-discern antigen. Materials and methods: All patients were known case of pulmonary sarcoidosis. All patients for this study had undergone X-ray and CT scan after taking informed consent. Results: In our study, we found that 17 (68%) patients with sarcoidosis have a characteristic radiologic appearance consisting of enlarged hilar and paratracheal lymph nodes, 24% of cases shows nonspecific or atypical findings, and in 4% of patients the radiograph is normal. Conclusion: Radiologists can play an essential role in the diagnosis and management of sarcoidosis. It is essential to recognize both the typical and the atypical manifestations of the disease and use information obtained from the correlation of imaging features with pathologic findings to help achieve an early diagnosis and reduce associated morbidity and mortality.