Sarcoidosis in the Middle East

Abstract

Sarcoidosis, a systemic granulomatous disease of unknown cause, has been described worldwide and in all populations with notable differences in clinical characteristics, organ involvement, disease severity, and prognosis among different ethnic and racial groups. While the exact prevalence of sarcoidosis in the Middle East is unknown, studies from various countries in the region have reported the clinical characteristics of affected patients, along with a few anecdotal reports. A search of the MEDLINE and Google Scholar databases was conducted for relevant English-language articles using the terms “sarcoidosis” and “Middle East” or “sarcoidosis” and “Arabs.” Subsequently, the names of individual countries were used as search terms, replacing “Middle East.” Overall, the clinical picture of patients with sarcoidosis in the Middle East is similar to that reported elsewhere; for example, the disease was more frequent among females and respiratory complaints were the predominant symptoms. Within the region, most patients from Oman were older and female, with arthralgia, hypercalcemia, and eye involvement being more common. Constitutional symptoms were frequent, especially among patients from Iran. Cough was more common among patients from Kuwait and Iran, while dyspnea was the predominant symptom for Saudi patients. Erythema nodosum was more common in the Turkish population. Clustering was seen in patients with Stage I and II of the disease in all countries except Oman. Apart from those in Iran, the prognosis of most patients from the Middle East was excellent.

A rare case of solitary optic nerve sarcoidosis mimicking an ocular tumor

“…The higher incidences are reported in Northern Europeans and African-Americans with the lowest in the Japanese population [1]. African-Americans typically experience a more extreme form of the disease compared to Caucasians [1]. Women are more affected than men worldwide [1].…”

“…Granulomas are the pathologic hallmark of sarcoidosis. Microscopically, granulomas are a local accumulation of inflammatory cells [1]. The disease is often multisystem and requires involvement in two or more organs for diagnosis.…”

“…African-Americans typically experience a more extreme form of the disease compared to Caucasians [1]. Women are more affected than men worldwide [1]. It is usually found in young adults who are overall and otherwise healthy.…”

“…It is usually found in young adults who are overall and otherwise healthy. Most cases are sporadic, but a familial form of the disease does exist [1].…”

Cardiac Sarcoidosis Managed by Biventricular Pacing: A Case Report

“…It affects 10-40 per 100,000 persons in the United States and Europe [2]. There is little information regarding the prevalence of sarcoidosis in the Middle East region, and studies done were mainly case reports [3]. One of the large studies included 142 patients belonging to the Kuwaiti population [4].…”