Upper airway. 4: Sarcoidosis of the upper respiratory tract (SURT)

Abstract

Sarcoidosis of the upper respiratory tract (SURT) includes nasopharyngeal, laryngeal and tracheal disease. Documented SURT occurs in approximately 5% of patients, although upper airway symptoms are more common in patients with sarcoidosis. Wegener granulomatosis may have a similar appearance to SURT, but there are important differences in the manifestations of the disease locally as well as systemically. In some cases, topical treatment is adequate to control SURT. However, many patients with significant sinus or laryngeal disease require long-term systemic treatment. While corticosteroids are often the initial drug of choice, there have been several reports of the effectiveness of cytotoxic agents and anti-tumour necrosis factor antibodies.