Infliximab for Refractory Cardiac Sarcoidosis

Cardiac sarcoidosis (CS) is frequently difficult to treat. Infliximab (IFX) is useful for extracardiac sarcoidosis, but its use in CS has been limited due to concerns about cardiotoxicity and an FDA blackbox warning about use in heart failure. We reviewed 36 consecutive patients treated with infliximab for CS refractory to standard therapies. IFX was initiated for patients with refractory dysrhythmias, moderate to severe cardiomyopathy, and evidence of persistent  F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake on positron emission tomography (PET) scan, despite standard therapies.

Source: The American Journal of Cardiology - August 22, 2019 Category: Cardiology Authors: Logan J Harper, Meghann McCarthy, Manuel L. Ribeiro Neto, Rory Hachamovitch, Karla Pearson, Barbara Bonanno, Josephine Shaiah, Richard Brunken, Emer Joyce, Daniel A Culver Source Type: research