Abstract
To explore the relationship between sarcoidosis and tuberculosis, we studied patients from 15 national hospitals about the number of inpatients suffering from bacilli-positive tuberculosis, sarcoidosis, and both, and about the clinical features of the patients with both diseases during 10 years period (1989-1998). There were 11, 171 bacilli-positive tuberculosis patients, 224 sarcoidosis patients, and six patients with both diseases. The six patients (4 female and 2 males) aged from 56 to 75. Sarcoldosls preceded in four patients two of whom had already been treated with steroids. As to the stage of sarcoidosis, there were 3 patients in Stage I, one in Stage II, and 2 in Stage III. As to the type of tuberculosis, there were 3 patients in pulmonary tuberculosis, 2 in lymphnodal tuberculosis, and one in miliary tuberculosis.
The incidence of sarcoidosis in bacilli-positive tuberculosis patients was significantly high (53.7 per 100, 000 versus 5.1 per 100, 000 in the general population) in this survey. These findings support the view that there is some relationship between tuberculosis and sarcoidosis.
