[Early diagnosis of pulmonary hemodynamic disorders in patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis]

A hundred and eleven patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis (PS) were examined to detect early impairments of pulmonary hemodynamics and myocardial function. A package of examinations included Doppler echocardiography at rest and with the Valsalva test, as well as electrocardiography and myocardial scintigraphy. In patients with early PS, right ventricular diastolic dysfunction is shown to be preceded by systolic dysfunction, as manifested itself in the altered ratio of different phases of right ventricular filling. As a method for early diagnosis of latent hypertension, the authors propose to use the Valsalva test to create a short-term volume overload of the right cardiac cavities. The study has indicated that left cardiac dilatation, decreased ejection fraction, left ventricular diastolic dysfunction, and the presence of large focal portions of fibrosis in the ventricular myocardium, interventricular septum, and papillary muscles can be considered to be early Doppler echocardiographic signs of sarcoidosis of the heart in patients with PS.