UAB Scientists Make Medical Discovery

BIRMINGHAM, AL - A major medical discovery with the use of big data regarding a serious cardiovascular disease has been published by a research group from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. The group summarized in the Journal of the American Heart Association the prevalence of cardiovascular manifestations, rates of defibrillator placements and predictors of in-hospital mortality in sarcoidosis.

According to a report by the Birmingham Business Journal, the piece on sarcoidosis was published by UAB's Nirav Patel. He also conducted and designed the study. Sarcoidosis is an illness involving the growth of tiny collections of inflammatory cells in different parts of the body, most commonly in the lungs, lymph nodes, eyes and skin. According to the treport by the BBJ, In utilizing the largest in-patient database, the National Inpatient Sample, a team of researchers from UAB has identified more than half a million sarcoidosis hospitalizations without any present or past history of ischemic heart disease, between 2005 through 2014 in the United States.

Researchers have found that the rate of hospitalization for sarcoidosis has increased and in-hospital deaths associated with the disease have decreased. Heart failure and arrhythmias were the most prevalent cardiovascular manifestation in sarcoidosis.

Photo by Michael Seale