Defining and Managing Sarcoidosis in African American Patients

Sarcoidosis is a systemic inflammatory disease of unknown origin that is categorized by the formulation of granulomas in various parts of the body including the lungs, skin, heart, and brain.

Though the disease does not always require medication, careful monitoring and management is always recommended as it may present in fatigue, pain, small fiber neuropathy and other comorbidities.

Sarcoidosis is reported to affect roughly 30,000 patients yearly with a majority of those cases originating from the African American community. The disease is 3 times more common in African Americans patients compared White patients, and presents more frequently in African American women.

Ogugua Obi, MD, MPH, MSc, Director of the Sarcoidosis Center of Excellence at ECU, Assistant Professor at ECU, and member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Foundation of Sarcoidosis Research (SAP), spoke of the disparities associated with the disease, the challenges patients face, and how sarcoidosis – the “great mimicker” as some clinicians have described it- can be differentiated from other diseases.