Sarcoidosis is an inflammatory disease characterized by the formation of abnormal masses (granulomas) in multiple organs of the body, like lungs and lymph glands. A small percentage of patients with sarcoidosis have shown cardiovascular events as well, but the association is not well studied. This study aims to evaluate the risk of adverse cardiac outcomes in patients with sarcoidosis.
This is a cohort study that included a total of 12,042 patients aged 18 or more with newly diagnosed sarcoidosis. The participants were matched in a 1:4 proportion by 47,336 control subjects. The primary outcome of the study was the incidence of cardiac outcomes, like heart failure, ventricular arrhythmia, and cardiac arrest.
Out of 12,042 patients with sarcoidosis, 11,834 were matched with 47,336 control subjects. During the follow-up of 8.2 years, the absolute risk of heart failure was 3.18% for sarcoidosis patients and 1.72% for the background population. In addition, the composite of other cardiac events, like ICD implantation, ventricular arrhythmias, and cardiac arrest, was 0.96% for sarcoidosis patients and 0.45% for the background population.
The research concluded that patients with sarcoidosis were at a higher risk of adverse cardiac outcomes, especially heart failure when compared to background controls.
Ref: https://www.onlinejacc.org/content/76/7/767
