Sarcoidosis in Australia

The incidence of sarcoidosis in Australia is unknown. The clinical features, diagnostic strategy and treatment of sarcoidosis in Australia have been poorly documented.

We analysed the medical records of 122 patients with sarcoidosis presenting to a respiratory service, between 1995 and 2005, which serves a regional southeastern Australian population of approximately 200,000.

The incidence of sarcoidosis from 2000 to 2005 remained static and ranged from 4.4 to 6.3 patients per 100,000 population. The data showed that 55% were women and 28% were current smokers. Systems involved included lung parenchyma (66%), thoracic adenopathy (58%), skin (22%), ocular (18%), joint (11%), gastrointestinal tract (5%), central nervous system (3%) and hypercalcaemia (3%). Fifty-one per cent of patients had an increased serum angiotensin-converting enzyme level. The diagnosis was secured based on histological confirmation in 69%. Forty-three per cent of the patients were treated with oral corticosteroids and 10% with inhaled steroids.

Sarcoidosis in Australia is a multi-system disease of unknown aetiology. This is the first reported incidence of sarcoidosis in Australia. The incidence is similar to another US-based epidemiological study of a predominately white population. The development of a larger multicentre database would assist in the identification, clinical description and treatment of sarcoidosis.