Presse Med
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Pulmonary hypertension is a challenging complication of sarcoidosis, which reported rates of prevalence largely depend on the advancement of pulmonary disease. About 6% of unselected sarcoidosis patients suffer from PH. Although destruction of the distal capillary bed and resultant hypoxemia are important, the mechanisms of sarcoidosis-PH are multifactorial, including specific vasculopathy, local increased vasoreactivity, extrinsic compression of pulmonary vessels and portal hypertension. ⋯ Rare cases of sarcoidosis-PH with nonfibrotic pulmonary disease respond to corticosteroids. Data on the efficacy and safety of PAH agents are scarce and discrepant. Further controlled trials are warranted and should integrate the concept of disproportionate PH in their design.
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The skin manifestations of sarcoidosis are classified as specific, where biopsy reveals non-caseating granulomas, and non-specific, typically erythema nodosum. The most frequent specific (granulomatous) skin lesions are maculopapules, subcutaneous nodules, scar sarcoidosis, plaques and lupus pernio. Skin biopsy allows early diagnosis of sarcoidosis through a non-aggressive procedure. ⋯ However, chronic skin lesions, particularly lupus pernio, are disfiguring and can have a strong psychological and social impact. Treatment of these lesions is a challenge since they do not respond well to conventional treatments. The introduction of biological agents has been an important although not definitive advance in the treatment of cutaneous sarcoidosis.
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A good selection of patients is a crucial step before transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) in order to select the good indications and choose the access route. TAVI should be considered only in patients with symptomatic severe aortic stenosis and either contraindication or high surgical risk. ⋯ Echocardiography and/or CT scan are mandatory to evaluate the aortic annulus size and select the good prosthesis size. The possibility of transfemoral implantation is evaluated by angiography and CT scan, and based on the arterial diameters, but also on the presence of tortuosities and arterial calcifications.
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Myocarditis is defined as inflammation of the myocardium accompanied by myocellular necrosis. Acute myocarditis must be considered in patients who present with recent-onset of cardiac failure or arrhythmia. Fulminant myocarditis is a distinct entity characterized by sudden onset of severe congestive heart failure or cardiogenic shock, usually following a flu-like illness, parvovirus B19, human herpesvirus 6, coxsackievirus and adenovirus being the most frequently viruses responsible for the disease. ⋯ Lastly, early recognition of patients rapidly progressing to refractory cardiac failure and their immediate transfer to a medical-surgical center experienced in mechanical circulatory support is warranted. In this setting, ECMO should be the first-line mechanical assistance. For highly unstable patients, a Mobile Cardiac Assistance Unit, that rapidly travels to primary care hospitals with a portable ECMO system and hooks it up before refractory multiorgan failure takes hold, is the preferred option.
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Sarcoidosis, a chronic multisystem disease, is a common cause of ocular inflammation. Even though clinical features are well-established, diagnosis requires histological confirmation, which remains difficult in patients with uveitis. Thus, the frequency of ocular sarcoidosis is overestimated. ⋯ Indocyanine green angiography and optical coherence tomography have dramatically improved our understanding of choroidal granulomas and macular edema. Treatment is based on topical and systemic corticosteroids in most of the cases, but immuno-suppressive agents may be necessary. The visual outcome remains favorable but severe complications, including glaucoma, cystoid macular edema and choroidal neovascularization, may need a prompt and aggressive management.