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Cleveland Clinic is nationally ranked for its heart care and recognized as a world leader in cardiovascular care.
Did you know that inflammation can leave scars in your heart and throw off its rhythm? It’s rare — but it happens.
Cardiac sarcoidosis is an inflammatory condition that can damage your heart muscle and affect how your heart works. It may cause abnormal heartbeats, slow your heart rhythm or damage the pumping function of your heart. Those issues can lead to serious heart problems such as arrhythmias, heart block and heart failure. Fast, expert care can help correct these issues or prevent the condition from worsening.
At Cleveland Clinic, our cardiology specialists have years of experience treating the most challenging heart conditions. We combine our expertise with the latest tests and treatments to uncover conditions that might be missed elsewhere. Once we know what’s going on with your heart, we’ll start treatment right away and keep a close eye on how you’re responding, so we can fine-tune your care along the way.
Cleveland Clinic is nationally ranked for its heart care and recognized as a world leader in cardiovascular care.
Our cardiac sarcoidosis team is nationally and internationally recognized for our experience and expertise in treating this rare condition. We use the latest diagnostic tests and customize your care plan to meet your specific needs. Meet our team.
Our team explores new treatment options through clinical trials, giving you access to therapies before they’re widely available.
Do you live out of town or find it hard to make in-person appointments? In some cases, we can set up a virtual second opinion. Check with your provider to see if a virtual visit is a good option.
Cardiac sarcoidosis begins with inflammation in your heart, which can lead to scarring. Both inflammation and scarring can interfere with the electrical signals that keep your heartbeat steady, which may disrupt your heart’s rhythm — especially in its lower chambers (ventricular arrhythmias).
Ventricular arrhythmias are linked to serious problems, like how well your heart pumps blood, heart failure or even sudden cardiac death. That’s why it’s important to get medical care as soon as you feel something isn’t right. An evaluation with our cardiology experts is the first step in your treatment journey.
Our nurse coordinators will help you get everything set for your first visit with one of our sarcoidosis specialists. If you’ve already seen your primary care provider or another specialist for your condition, your coordinator will help collect outside records. They’ll also walk you through what to expect at your evaluation.
During your visit, we’ll talk with you about your symptoms and overall health. We’ll review your personal and family medical history and do a physical exam. You may have some tests scheduled before your appointment and others afterward.
These tests help rule out other conditions and confirm your diagnosis. Some also show how much your cardiac sarcoidosis has progressed, from early signs to more advanced stages. You might have tests like:
If we need more information to pinpoint a diagnosis, we’ll work closely with our pulmonary (lung) sarcoidosis specialists to do more tests. These may include bronchoscopy and endobronchial ultrasound-guided biopsy of lymph nodes in your chest. And depending on where the sarcoid affects your body, we may bring in other specialists.
When you’re diagnosed with cardiac sarcoidosis, our expert cardiologists will lead your care team. But because sarcoidosis can affect many parts of your body — not just your heart — you may work with a broader team of specialists and support providers, including:
We tailor your team with the right mix of providers, who’ll work with you to plan and manage your care at every stage.
We believe in personalized care at Cleveland Clinic. That means we build a care team based on your unique needs and diagnosis — combining the experience of providers from different specialties. You’ll mainly work with cardiothoracic surgeons and cardiologists.
These providers work together to make sure you have a care plan that meets your needs. And they’re here to answer any questions you have.
Our healthcare providers see patients at convenient locations throughout Northeast Ohio.
No two people experience cardiac sarcoidosis in the same way. That’s why our team builds a personalized, comprehensive treatment plan based on your specific diagnosis, test results and overall health. Your care may include:
When it comes to medications you’ll take, you’ll always be kept in the loop. A prescription (or more than one) could come from your pulmonologist, cardiologist or another specialist. But we’ll work as a team to determine what’s best for you. We may prescribe medications to:
Catheter ablation, a minimally invasive procedure, uses heat, cold or bursts of energy to create scars in areas where arrhythmias start. This type of scarring is different from the kind cardiac sarcoidosis causes and can help block abnormal electrical signals and heart rhythms.
For severe interruptions with your heart rhythm, we may surgically implant a cardiac device, like a:
Sometimes, sarcoidosis can cause severe heart damage that you can’t manage with standard treatment. When that happens, your care team may recommend a heart transplant — major surgery where we replace your heart with a healthy one from an organ donor.
We consider this if you’re too sick to survive without it. And because donor hearts are limited, you must meet strict criteria to be eligible. If a transplant becomes the next step, our team will walk you through every part of the process and make sure you understand what to expect.
Once you’re diagnosed with sarcoidosis, it’s important to complete treatment and stay on top of your heart health with regular follow-up visits. These visits often include imaging tests to check how well your heart is working. These tests also help us find out if the cardiac sarcoidosis isn’t responding to treatment or has returned. If it does, we can catch it early — and adjust your treatment right away.
Early diagnosis and ongoing care can make a big difference in managing cardiac sarcoidosis. If you’ve noticed symptoms or have concerns, it’s important to listen to your body and reach out when you’re ready. Our cardiology specialists are here to support you and guide you through every step of your care
Getting an appointment with Cleveland Clinic’s cardiac sarcoidosis experts is easy. We’re here to help you get the care you need.
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