CHAPTER 16 Sarcoidosis in children

Sarcoidosis is relatively uncommon among children. Its diagnosis is based on a combination of suggestive clinical features, with histologically documented noncaseating granuloma, in the absence of other known causes of granuloma formation. Epidemiology The incidence and prevalence of sarcoidosis are reported to be influenced by age, race and geographical localisation. The disease shows a peak between the ages of 20–40 yrs. Although the youngest reported patients were infants aged 2 and 3 months, most of the cases reported in children have occurred in pre-adolescents and adolescents [1, 2]. From the national patient registry of patients with sarcoidosis in Denmark during the period 1979–1994, 48 patients with a confirmed diagnosis were agedƒ15 yrs [3]. The calculated incidence was 0.29 cases per 100,000 person-yrs in those agedƒ15 yrs. In children aged ƒ4 yrs, the incidence was 0.06 cases per 100,000 person-yrs, increasing gradually to 1.02 cases per 100,000 person-yrs in children aged 14–15 yrs. It is important to point out that the age-specific incidence and prevalence of paediatric sarcoidosis remain uncertain since it is, without doubt, an underdiagnosed condition. Indeed, the disease can b