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Bone Health Issues in Sarcoidosis

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Abstract

Sarcoidosis affects the bone directly in only a minority of patients. Nonetheless, bone health should be considered in the management of all patients with sarcoidosis. Deficiency in vitamin D, an important contributor to bone health, has been linked to autoimmune disease incidence. Studies have shown that patients with sarcoidosis frequently have low levels of vitamin D-25 but may have normal or increased levels of vitamin D-1,25. In addition, granuloma formation has been linked to a failure of the innate immune system, which could be related to a deficiency in vitamin D, although this relationship has not been fully characterized. Furthermore, many patients with sarcoidosis are treated with corticosteroids, which are known to induce osteoporosis. Therefore, bone health may be impacted in several ways in sarcoidosis—by direct involvement with granulomas, vitamin D deficiency, or corticosteroid therapy.

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Disclosure

Dr. Favus has served as a consultant for CVS/Caremark and Amgen. Drs. Sweiss, Lower, Korsten, Niewold, and Baughman reported no potential conflicts of interest relevant to this article.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Sections of Rheumatology and Pulmonary Medicine, University of Chicago Medical Center, 5841 South Maryland Avenue, MC0930, Room N005B, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA

    Nadera J. Sweiss

  2. Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, University of Cincinnati Medical Center, 1001 Holmes, Eden Avenue, Cincinnati, OH, 45219, USA

    Elyse E. Lower & Robert P. Baughman

  3. Department of Nephrology and Rheumatology, Robert-Koch-Str. 40, 37075, Goettingen, Germany

    Peter Korsten

  4. Section of Pulmonary Medicine, University of Chicago Medical Center, 5841 South Maryland Avenue, MC0930, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA

    Timothy B. Niewold

  5. Section of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism, University of Chicago, 5841 South Maryland Avenue, MC 01027, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA

    Murray J. Favus

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  1. Nadera J. Sweiss
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  2. Elyse E. Lower
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  3. Peter Korsten
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  4. Timothy B. Niewold
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Correspondence to Nadera J. Sweiss.

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Sweiss, N.J., Lower, E.E., Korsten, P. et al. Bone Health Issues in Sarcoidosis. Curr Rheumatol Rep 13, 265–272 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11926-011-0170-1

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