Active clinical trials for "Sarcoidosis"

Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) is a rare condition in which the heart muscle cells especially of the main pumping chamber (the 'ventricle') is replaced by fat and scar tissue. Sarcoidosis is a condition that can affect many organs but when it affects the heart patches of inflammation can result in scarring, especially of the ventricles. Both conditions can cause dangerous heart rhythms and sudden death. Sarcoidosis can be treated with inflammation suppressing treatment (steroids), as well as pacemakers and implantable defibrillators which shock the heart back to normal rhythm. ARVC is usually treated with implantable defibrillators. The diagnosis of either condition can be difficult and indeed distinguishing the two can be extremely challenging. Increasingly nuclear scans (PET) are used to identify inflammation in the heart in patients suspected of having cardiac sarcoid. It is not known whether patients with ARVC have abnormal PET scans.

The purpose of this study is to validate the method of analysing Positron Emission Tomography (PET) images to assess lung inflammation. Development of novel therapeutic drugs requires a biomarker which is sensitive to the underlying disease and can respond to therapeutic interventions. PET is a potential imaging biomarker which can target molecular and cellular processes. There is currently no standardised method of analysing PET lung data and a lack of validation for the existing techniques. This study is divided in to two parts. Part A aims to determine the best method to perform 18F-FDG PET/CT lung analysis and how it correlates with cell counts from bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) samples taken from participants with active pulmonary sarcoidosis. Part B will compare imaging data from healthy volunteers who have either undergone a Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) challenge (whereby the lung is temporarily inflamed) or saline equivalent to determine whether lung inflammation can be detected by 18F-FDG PET/CT. No medications will be given and patients will not be asked to stop or change existing medication.

Major impacts of air pollution are lung diseases such as granulomatous diseases and mainly sarcoidosis. Understanding the respective role of inorganic / nanoparticles and genetic background in these chronic diseases is a major challenge for the management of patients and prevention strategies. Granulomas are characterized by giant epithelioid and multinucleated cells, reflecting a severe disturbance in immunological pathways induced both by toxic exposure and genetic predisposition. Previous studies demonstrated that professional environmental context and acute exposures (the World Trade Center disaster) to micro/nanoparticles have a pathogenic impact with a sharp increase in sarcoidosis. Sarcoidosis is a multifactorial disease occurring in a genetically vulnerable context. Many gene variants have been linked to an increased odds-ratio of the disease, such BTNL2, CCDC88B, ANNEXIN A11 involved in regulation of T-cell activation and maturation pathways. We have contributed since 2008 to a national cohort (GSF, 28 centers) of ≈ 800 sarcoidosis patients with familial and sporadic presentation of the disease. This collection has been an exceptional (and worldwide unique) tool for the implementation of an exhaustive clinical database on sarcoidosis, modelling of disease evolution and identification of clinical / genetic criteria differentiating sporadic and familial forms. The main goals of the project are: Completion of the genetic data in order to establish a pattern of gene variants segregating with familial forms of the disease, compared to sporadic one. This will be done by WES (WHOLE EXOME) analysis on the previously collected DNA samples. The informed consent for the patients included the information about the BTNL2 gene, which has been already tested since 2008, and related genes connected to immune pathways, thus allowing a unambiguous information about the research finality of the project. Completion of the clinical data about each patient, in cooperation with the GSF network, management of the database established since 2008. The data collected are those which are commonly detailed in the normal follow-up of the patients. The project do not include any new interventions on the patient (neither radiological or invasive tests). Specific biological studies might be done on the white blood cells of the patients, and might need in such cases a new blood sampling, both in patients and first degree related healthy controls. Theses specific studies will be presented to an ethical committee (CCP) in order to validate the feasibility in term of 'new intervention' on the cohort. The samples collected will be at the same volume of a classical blood sampling (2*7 ml). Any other projects, submitted to the GSF network will needed a specific registration and ethical committee validation.

Current diagnostic tools used in interstitial lung disease (ILD) do not meet the challenges set by the complex pathophysiology of this heterogenous group. The investigators therefore aimed to evaluate novel or not widely used diagnostic approaches for the detection and therapeutic monitoring of patients with various ILDs.

This study aims to see if people's health related quality of life (how they feel about their health) changes over a 12 week period if they do not receive any change in their medicines. The investigators would like people to complete four questionnaires then repeat them after three months. The investigators need to do this to in order see what difference they should expect to detect if they give people treatment that works.

Evaluate change of quality of life of sarcoiodosis patients over a six months using various quality of life instruments including a monthly smart phone app.

Registry to follow patients with sarcoidosis associated pulmonary hypertension

Retrospective review of the outcome of use of immunosuppressive drugs in treatment of sarcoidosis