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World J Ophthalmol. Feb 12, 2015; 5(1): 16-22
Published online Feb 12, 2015. doi: 10.5318/wjo.v5.i1.16
Cranial neuropathies in sarcoidosis
Hussam A Yacoub, Zaid A Al-Qudah, Nizar Souayah
Hussam A Yacoub, Center for Advanced Health Care, Lehigh Valley Health Network, Allentown, PA 18103, United States
Zaid A Al-Qudah, Nizar Souayah, Neurological Institute of New Jersey, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ 08854, United States
Author contributions: All the authors solely contributed to this paper.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Hussam A Yacoub, DO, MS, Center for Advanced Health Care, Lehigh Valley Health Network, 1250 South Cedar Crest Blvd, Suite 405, Allentown, PA 18103, United States. hyacoub123@yahoo.com
Telephone: +1-610-5976873 Fax: +1-610-4025925
Received: May 22, 2014
Peer-review started: May 23, 2014
First decision: July 18, 2014
Revised: September 19, 2014
Accepted: November 10, 2014
Article in press: November 19, 2014
Published online: February 12, 2015
Processing time: 242 Days and 13.4 Hours
Abstract

Sarcoidosis is a multisystem, chronic inflammatory disease that is characterized by the development of non-caseating granulomas in multiple body tissues and organ systems. Neurological complications of systemic sarcoidosis include peripheral and cranial neuropathies, myopathies, seizures, gait dysfunction, and cognitive decline. Because sarcoidosis has a predilection to involve the basilar meninges, cranial neuropathy is the most prevalent neurological deficit seen when the nervous system is involved. Sarcoidosis cranial neuropathy may occur at different stages of the disease and even as the initial clinical manifestation of central nervous system involvement. Attributing a cranial neuropathy to sarcoidosis can be challenging, particularly in the setting of normal imaging studies. In this review, cranial neuropathies in sarcoidosis are discussed in detail.

Keywords: Sarcoidosis; Neurosarcoidosis; Cranial neuropathy; Central nervous system

Core tip: Sarcoidosis is a multisystem, chronic inflammatory disease that is characterized by the development of non-caseating granulomas in multiple body tissues and organ systems. Neurological complications occur in 5%-15% of the cases. Because sarcoidosis has a predilection to involve the basilar meninges, cranial neuropathy is the most prevalent neurological deficit seen when the nervous system is involved. Several review papers on neurosarcoidosis have been published, but none has elaborated on cranial neuropathies. In this review, cranial neuropathies in sarcoidosis are discussed in detail, with elaboration on each cranial nerve individually and a representation of case reports from the literature.