Management of cardiac sarcoidosis – A practical guide

Publication date: April 2018Source: Cor et Vasa, Volume 60, Issue 2Author(s): Petr Kopriva, Martin Griva, Zbynek TüdösAbstractSarcoidosis is a multi-system granulomatous disorder of unclear etiology which can affect any organ of the body including the heart. The heart is involved in up to 25% of sarcoidosis patients. In rare cases, the heart can be the only organ involved.Involvement of the heart, called cardiac sarcoidosis, especially if symptomatic, significantly deteriorates the prognosis for sarcoidosis patients, which is why cardiac sarcoidosis should be not only considered, but also searched for actively. Despite recent advances in this field, diagnosis, risk-stratification, and treatment of cardiac sarcoidosis remains a challenging issue. Fortunately, several recommendations have been recently formulated which provide relatively clear guidance on the management of patients with cardiac sarcoidosis. The cornerstone of management of these patients is a multidisciplinary approach involving collaboration of cardiologists, pulmonologists, radiologists, rheumatologists, and other specialists.Currently, diagnosis of cardiac sarcoidosis is based on an assessment of a patients’ symptoms, physical examination and results of standard ECG, Holter monitoring and echocardiography. This series of examinations can identify individuals with possible cardiac sarcoidosis, who should undergo, as the next step, cardiac magnetic resonance and positron emission tomography, which are the ...
Source: Cor et Vasa - Category: Cardiology Source Type: research