Case of sarcoidosis with uncommon tumorous mass formation in bulbar conjunctiva

Abstract

A case of sarcoidosis with ocular involvement, including uncommon tumorous mass formation on the bulbar conjunctiva, was reported. The patient was a 62-year-old woman who had been suffering from chronic bronchiolitis for several years. The conjuctival masses, yellowish brown in color with localized injection and follicles, were found in both eyes. In addition to the conjunctival masses, the common manifestations of sarcoidosis were observed in the eyes, showing nodules on the iris and trabeculum, discrete fluffy "snowball" opacities in the vitreous, and perivascular nodules on the retinal vessels. Microscopically, the biopsy specimen obtained from he conjunctival masses was composed of epithelioid tubercles with Langhans type and foreign body type giant cells. Ziehl-Neelsen stain revealed no tuberculous bacilli. Transbronchial lung biopsy also revealed epithelioid tubercles. Both ocular and pulmonary lesions were observed to respond well to treatment with corticosteroid hormone. We emphasized that patients with interstitial pneumonitis or pulmonary fibrosis should be examined ophthalmologically, and recommended conjunctival biopsy in patients with suspected sarcoidosis.