CLINICAL FINDINGS IN 715 PATIENTS WITH NEWLY DETECTED PULMONARY SARCOIDOSIS - RESULTS OF A COOPERATIVE STUDY IN FORMER WEST-GERMANY AND SWITZERLAND

Background and aim of work: Clinical appearance of sarcoidosis depends on the methods of case finding and geographical factors. In a further effort to clarify clinical characteristics of pulmonary sarcoidosis, eve examined a larger population of consecutive pulmonary sarcoidosis cases throughout former West Germany and Switzerland. Methods: In a pr ospective multicenter study from January 1982 to December 1984, 715 pa tients with newly-diagnosed pulmonary sarcoidosis were studied for the ir clinical appearance, roentgenological and laboratory findings and p ulmonary function. Results: The group consisted of 366 male and 349 fe male patients with a median age of 33 years (range 14 to 76), 35% pres ented with roentgenological stage I disease, 51% with stage II and 14% with stage III. Extrapulmonary manifestations were found in 16%. Angi otensin converting enzyme was elevated in 62% of the cases, Lung funct ion tests revealed a restrictive pattern in 19% and airway obstruction in 4%; 2% showed a combined ventilation disturbance, 66% of our patie nts were symptomatic in contrast to reports from former East Germany, a country with mass X-ray screening where only 18 to 35% of the patien ts presented with symptoms and 51 to 74% were in stage I. Conclusions: Differences between our findings and data from East Germany underline the importance of case finding methods for the patterns of clinical a ppearance of sarcoidosis.