• The charts of 329 patients with sarcoidosis were reviewed to determine if there were significant associations between the presence of sarcoidosis skin lesions and other abnormalities. Sixty-four patients had either biopsy specimen-documented cutaneous granulomata or erythema nodosum (EN). Respiratory symptoms occurred in 41% of patients with skin lesions compared with 63% of patients with sarcoidosis without skin lesions. Among patients with skin lesions other than EN, splenomegaly occurred in 38%, hepatomegaly in 32%, and lymphadenopathy in 31% compared with 10%, 11%, and 56%, respectively, for patients with sarcoidosis without skin lesions. Thirty-two percent of patients with EN had progressive disease compared with 72% of patients with skin lesions other than EN; however, improved prognosis with EN was limited to white patients.
(Arch Intern Med 1985;145:1811-1814)