Differences in pulmonary sarcoidosis found between ethnic groups

People with pulmonary sarcoidosis (PS) experience different side effects depending on their ethnic background, new research published in the European Respiratory Journal has found.

People with PS have small swollen lumps on their lungs. This means the lungs do not work as well. People with PS can also develop pulmonary hypertension (high blood pressure in the blood vessels that go to the lungs).

This study looked at how common high blood pressure is in around 400 people with PS. Most patients in this study were Caucasian.

The study estimated that around 3% of people with PS have high blood pressure. However, the researchers also found that this side effect is much less common in people who are Caucasian compared to other ethnicities. People with PS who have an African American or Arab background are more likely to have high blood pressure.

This study highlights the need for researchers to include people with different ethnicities in their research. Without comparing different groups, important differences may be missed. What’s needed now is more research to better understand how different diseases affect different groups of people.

Read the article abstract

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