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DOI: 10.1055/s-0030-1266980
Sonographic Assessment of Interstitial Lung Disease in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis, Systemic Sclerosis and Systemic Lupus Erythematodes
Introduction/Aims: The usefulness of transthoracic ultrasound in the evaluation of lung diseases has been highlighted in the past decades. We describe variable lung ultrasound patterns in an observational series of patients with RA, SLE and SSc.
Patients and methods: A sample of 45 consecutive patients with RA (n=25) SSc (n=14) and SLE (n=6) was enrolled into the study and every study patient underwent both lung sonography and HRCT. The following ultrasound findings were documented in each study patient: comet-tail artifacts, subpleural nodes and thickenings of the pleural line. HRCT was analyzed by an experienced radiologist blind to sonography findings.
Results: Twenty-eight percent of the RA cohort, 64% of the SSc patients and four out of 6 SLE patients showed ILD on HRCT. Pathological ultrasound patterns were more frequent in the ILD group than in the Non-ILD group (100% vs. 12,5%, 55% vs. 17% and 95% vs. 12,5% for comet-tail artifacts, subpleural nodes and thickenings of the pleural line). Subpleural nodes were present in 100% of the RA patients vs. 22% of the SSc patients and 50% of the SLE patients with ILD. A thickened pleural line >3mm was documented in 100% of SSC and SLE patients with ILD, vs. 86% of ILD patients suffering from RA.
Conclusion: Transthoracic ultrasound of the lung might be a sensitive noninvasive tool to observe interstitial lung disease in rheumatic diseases.
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