Cardiac involvement in cutaneous sarcoidosis: case reports and review of the literature

Sarcoidosis is a chronic multisystem disease that usually has a good prognosis but in some cases, especially when cardiac involvement occurs, the outcome is fatal. Cardiac sarcoidosis is insidious to diagnose because it is usually asymptomatic and when clinically apparent, it may have a wide variety of manifestations. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible cardiac involvement in cutaneous sarcoidosis patients.

Sarcoidosis is a chronic multisystem disease that usually has a good prognosis but in some cases, especially when cardiac involvement occurs, the outcome is fatal. Cardiac sarcoidosis is insidious to diagnose because it is usually asymptomatic and when clinically apparent, it may have a wide variety of manifestations. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible cardiac involvement in cutaneous sarcoidosis patients. Diagnosis of cutaneous sarcoidosis was confirmed by skin biopsy, laboratory tests and radiological findings in 13 Caucasian patients. To evaluate cardiac damage, electrocardiography, echocardiography, and contrast-enhanced cardiac magnetic resonance were performed. Magnetic resonance identified cardiac sarcoidosis only in one of the cutaneous sarcoidosis patients. We suggest investigating cardiac involvement in patients with cutaneous sarcoidosis, albeit asymptomatic, since cardiac lesions are frequently associated with a poorer prognosis.