Tumour necrosis factor alpha inhibitor treatment for sarcoidosis refractory to conventional treatments: a report of five patients.

Abstract

To study the effectiveness of tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha) inhibitor treatment for sarcoidosis refractory to conventional treatments. Five patients (two men, three women) were treated with infliximab. All patients received a loading dose of 3 mg/kg at 0, 2, and 6 weeks and then maintenance infusions every 4-8 weeks. Patients had their dose increased or the dosing interval reduced when the disease relapsed. These patients had active disease despite treatment with corticosteroids and other immunomodulatory agents. All patients had a negative tuberculin skin test. Sarcoidosis in all patients improved significantly without any serious adverse reactions. This study suggests that TNFalpha is effective in patients for whom conventional treatment fails.