Nationwide analysis shows combined pulmonary-cardiac sarcoidosis has greater healthcare burden in younger patients, implying needed screening improvements.
Key Points
This research aims to compare the clinical profile and healthcare burden between isolated pulmonary sarcoidosis and combined pulmonary-cardiac sarcoidosis.
Analyzed ICD-10 codes from the National Inpatient Sample (2016-2022).
Exclusion of any cases with additional organ involvement beyond lung or heart for clear comparison.
Compared demographics, comorbidities, and healthcare burden metrics between the two groups.
Identified 154,125 hospitalizations, with 2.41% being combined pulmonary-cardiac cases.
Combined pulmonary-cardiac sarcoidosis patients were younger (mean age: 58.2) and had higher comorbidity (CCI: 3.49).
Longer hospital stays and higher charges were noted in combined cases ($122,460 total hospital charges).