[Sarcoidosis activity markers].

Sarcoidosis is a granulomatous multisystemic disorder, of unknown origin, that commonly affects young adults between 20-40 years of age. The disease usually manifests itself with changes in the chest which are radiologically visible in 90% of the patients in the form of bilateral hilar lymphadenopathy to interstitial infiltrates in the lungs and bronchi. Once the diagnosis of sarcoidosis has been established, the next step is to evaluate the activity and stadium of the disease. These activity markers include clinical, biochemical and immunological parameters. The clinical criteria include symptoms which indicate the clinical manifestation of sarcoidosis, as well as symptoms which are of prognostic importance for the further course of the disease: dry cough, dyspnea, erythema nodosum, posterior uveitis, polyarthralgia, myopathy, cardiac, renal or nervous system involvement, lymphadenopathy, skin lesions, splenomegaly, enlarged parotid and lacrimal glands, changes in chest x-ray and changes in pulmonary function tests. Biological criteria: biochemical markers in serum which are related to: macrophage and epithelioid cell activity, to lymphocyte activity, to granuloma activity and to collagen metabolism alterations; isotopic markers--67 gallium scan and cellular and soluble components in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BAL).