Lung Ultrasound and High Resolution Computed Tomography in Interstitial Lung Disease Identification in Rheumatoid Patients

Objectives to identify the role of lung ultrasound compared to high resolution computed tomography (HRCT) in diagnosis of interstitial lung disease (ILD) in rheumatoid arthritis patients, which is an available and inexpensive tool that allows detection of ILD, in order to better select patients who are candidates for HRCT. Background Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a frequent extra-articular manifestation of rheumatoid arthritis associated with increased morbidity and mortality. High Resolution Computed Tomography is used for diagnosis and follow-up, but its accuracy is counterbalanced by high cost and radiation exposure risk. Lung ultrasound is considered to be an alternative for diagnosing ILD. Methods This study included 30 rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients collected over a 6-month period. Detailed medical history, disease activity scores (DAS28), inflammatory markers, rheumatoid factor (RF), and anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (CCP) were recorded. Lung ultrasound, high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT), chest x-ray and pulmonary function tests (PFTs) were done and patients were divided into two groups (RA-ILD and RA- non ILD). Results In our study, 70% of patients were RA- non ILD and 30% were RA-ILD. The predominance of ILD was in females with 77.8%. There was a significant relation between RA-ILD and RA- non ILD regarding chest x-ray (p=0.001). There was a significant relation between lung ultrasound (B lines, pulmonary nodes, and pleural thickness) and HRCT in both groups (p