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While the protein osteopontin is elevated in the blood of people with sarcoidosis, the increased levels are not determined by known genetic factors, according to a recent study. Nevertheless, several DNA variants in the osteopontin gene were linked to specific disease characteristics, such as lung tissue involvement, fever, or significant weight…

MicroRNAs encased in small vesicles (exosomes) present in blood circulation may help identify sarcoidosis patients at risk of developing cardiac sarcoidosis (CS). The study “Exosomal MicroRNA for Detection of Cardiac Sarcoidosis” was published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine (AJRCCM). “CS is…

Patients with sarcoidosis have more than twice the risk of bone fractures compared to healthy people, a finding most likely linked to the inflammatory nature of the disease. While glucocorticoids — the main treatment option for sarcoidosis — are known to cause osteoporosis, researchers at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester,…

Three patients developed subcutaneous sarcoidosis in their arm after receiving an injection, but symptoms disappeared after treatment with minocycline, a broad-spectrum antibiotic, according to a research report. James Abbott and colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine wrote the report, “Isolated Subcutaneous Sarcoid-Like Granulomatous Inflammation Occurring At Injection…

Understanding which molecules, genes and proteins are active or inactive in sarcoidosis patients may help explain differences in the disease’s severity from patient to patient, a study reported. The variations in these actions and inactions — which scientists call molecular differences — may also explain which organs sarcoidosis will impact.

Sarcoidosis patients may be at a higher risk of cardiovascular disease than the general population — especially if patients have previous heart conditions, smoke, are overweight, or have diabetes, a study reports. The findings were published in the European Respiratory Journal, in the article “Risk Of Cardiovascular Disease Among Patients With…

The bacteria causing tuberculosis (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) is also involved in sarcoidosis, confirms a study published in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases.

Sarcoidosis patients are two times more susceptible to hospitalized infection than the general population, especially those treated with glucocorticoid therapy, according to results of a new study. The study, titled “Sarcoidosis Increases Risk Of Hospitalized Infection: A Population-Based Study 1976-2013,” was published in the journal Annals of the…

Three cases of cutaneous sarcoidosis and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in the same patients highlight the need for doctors to be vigilant when sarcoidosis patients develop new, unusual skin lesions, according to a case study. The research, “Sarcoidosis and squamous cell carcinoma: a connection documented in a case series of…

Enbrel (etanercept), could be a treatment option for patients who develop sarcoid-like reactions following treatment with other tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-⍺) inhibitors, according to a study published in the journal Zeitschrift für Rheumatologie.