Hello and welcome to the Zero to Finals podcast. My name is Tom and in this episode I'm going to be

talking to you about sarcoidosis. And you can find written notes on this topic at zero to

finals.com slash sarcoidosis or in the respiratory section of the second edition of the zero to finals medicine book.

So let's get straight into it.

Sarcoidosis is a chronic granulomatous disorder.

Granulomas are inflammatory nodules that are full of macrophages.

The cause of these granulomas and psychodosis is not known.

Cycordosis is usually associated with respiratory symptoms,

but it has many extra pulmonary manifestations,

such as erythema nodosum and lymphadenopathy.

Symptoms can vary dramatically from asymptomatic to severe or life-threatening.

Let's start with the epidemiology.

Sarcoidosis can affect anyone, but it seems to be slightly more common in people aged 20 to 39,

or around 60 years of age, women, and patients of black ethnic origin.

A tom tip for you, the typical MCQ exam patient is a 20 to 40 year old black female patient presenting with a dry cough

and shortness of breath. They may have nodules on their shins suggesting erythema nodocum.

Let's talk about the skin features. Less than half of patients with sarcoidosis have skin involvement.

However, these findings are worth remembering particularly for exams.

Erythema nodosum is characterized by nodules of inflamed subcutaneous fat on the shins.

Inflammation of fat is called paniculitis.

Aeritheminodosin presents with raised, red, tender, painful, subcutaneous nodules across both shins.

Over time, these nodules settle and then appear as bruises.

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