Studies were eligible for inclusion if they assessed the accuracy of 18F-FDG-PET for the diagnosis of cardiac sarcoidosis and used Ministry of Health Labour and Welfare of Japan guidelines as the reference standard to confirm diagnosis.
The modified Ministry of Health Labour and Welfare criteria required histological or clinical diagnosis of extra-cardiac sarcoidosis with a diagnosis of complete right bundle branch block, left axis deviation, atrio-ventricular block, ventricular tachycardia, premature ventricular contractions or Q or ST-T abnormalities on echocardiograph plus one of the diagnoses: abnormal regional wall motion, wall thinning or dilation of the left ventricle; a perfusion defect; elevated intra-cardiac pressures, low cardiac output or abnormal wall motion or depressed left ventricular ejection fraction on contrast-enhanced left ventriculography.
Most of the included studies included patients already diagnosed with cardiac sarcoidosis or with a strong clinical suspicion of cardiac sarcoidosis; the overall prevalence of cardiac sarcoidosis was 50%. Included studies used various qualitative and/or quantitative 18F-FDG-PET diagnostic criteria (details reported in an online appendix).
Two reviewers independently assessed studies for inclusion.