A feasibility study of a short lung ultrasound protocol as a screening method for fibrotic interstitial lung disease
Aims: Interstitial lung disease (ILD) represents a common complication of connective tissue diseases (CTD). Early detection of ILD is critical since patients often remain asymptomatic during the initial stages. While numerous studies have proposed various ultrasound protocols for ILD evaluation, we...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Sociedade Portuguesa de Reumatologia
2025-03-01
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| Series: | ARP Rheumatology |
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| Online Access: | http://www.arprheumatology.com/files/article/1576_a_feasibility_study_of_a_short_file.pdf |
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| author | Sara Braga André Carvalho Márcio Rodrigues Pedro Madureira Raquel Miriam Ferreira André Terras Alexandre Natália Melo Patrícia Caetano Mota António Morais Hélder Novais Bastos |
| author_facet | Sara Braga André Carvalho Márcio Rodrigues Pedro Madureira Raquel Miriam Ferreira André Terras Alexandre Natália Melo Patrícia Caetano Mota António Morais Hélder Novais Bastos |
| author_sort | Sara Braga |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Aims: Interstitial lung disease (ILD) represents a common complication of connective tissue diseases (CTD). Early detection of ILD is critical since patients often remain asymptomatic during the initial stages. While numerous studies have proposed various ultrasound protocols for ILD evaluation, we find these protocols to be time-consuming in our clinical practice. The aim of this study is to introduce a concise lung ultrasound protocol for the screening of pulmonary fibrosis.
Methods: We conducted a prospective observational pilot study involving 28 patients followed in consultation for ILDs. By implementing this streamlined protocol, we established correlations between ultrasound findings at specific locations and their corresponding tomographic patterns. Following the assessment of the protocol's diagnostic accuracy, a multidisciplinary meeting was convened to scrutinize ultrasound images from several patients and evaluate the level of agreement among rheumatologists, pulmonologists, and radiologists.
Results: Our simplified protocol revealed significant correlations between ultrasonographic pleural irregularity, discontinuity and the number of B-lines, and the tomographic findings of reticulation and honeycombing in both the upper and lower lung regions. This protocol demonstrated high sensitivity and positive predictive value in identifying reticulation and honeycombing, as well as remarkable specificity and negative predictive value for the latter. The results obtained between the specialties showed strong agreement.
Conclusion: Preliminary results suggest a role of ultrasound to detect peripheral manifestations of fibrotic ILDs, such as reticulation and honeycombing. This assessment protocol can be adopted effectively by clinicians, such as rheumatologists, to evaluate lung involvement by CTDs. A larger study is necessary to achieve more robust and generalizable results as a screening tool. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ad0b3b5b4dac4f6aade5638329aef498 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2795-4552 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | Sociedade Portuguesa de Reumatologia |
| record_format | Article |
| series | ARP Rheumatology |
| spelling | doaj-art-ad0b3b5b4dac4f6aade5638329aef4982025-08-20T03:15:47ZengSociedade Portuguesa de ReumatologiaARP Rheumatology2795-45522025-03-01202512028AO240305A feasibility study of a short lung ultrasound protocol as a screening method for fibrotic interstitial lung diseaseSara Braga0André Carvalho1Márcio Rodrigues2Pedro Madureira3Raquel Miriam Ferreira4André Terras Alexandre5Natália Melo6Patrícia Caetano Mota7António Morais8Hélder Novais Bastos9Unidade Local de Saúde Póvoa de Varzim/ Vila do CondeUnidade Local de Saúde de São João, EPEUnidade Local de Saúde de Braga, EPEUnidade Local de Saúde de São João, EPEUnidade Local de Saúde de São João, EPEUnidade Local de Saúde de São João, EPEUnidade Local de Saúde de São João, EPEUnidade Local de Saúde de São João, EPEUnidade Local de Saúde de São João, EPEUnidade Local de Saúde de São João, EPEAims: Interstitial lung disease (ILD) represents a common complication of connective tissue diseases (CTD). Early detection of ILD is critical since patients often remain asymptomatic during the initial stages. While numerous studies have proposed various ultrasound protocols for ILD evaluation, we find these protocols to be time-consuming in our clinical practice. The aim of this study is to introduce a concise lung ultrasound protocol for the screening of pulmonary fibrosis. Methods: We conducted a prospective observational pilot study involving 28 patients followed in consultation for ILDs. By implementing this streamlined protocol, we established correlations between ultrasound findings at specific locations and their corresponding tomographic patterns. Following the assessment of the protocol's diagnostic accuracy, a multidisciplinary meeting was convened to scrutinize ultrasound images from several patients and evaluate the level of agreement among rheumatologists, pulmonologists, and radiologists. Results: Our simplified protocol revealed significant correlations between ultrasonographic pleural irregularity, discontinuity and the number of B-lines, and the tomographic findings of reticulation and honeycombing in both the upper and lower lung regions. This protocol demonstrated high sensitivity and positive predictive value in identifying reticulation and honeycombing, as well as remarkable specificity and negative predictive value for the latter. The results obtained between the specialties showed strong agreement. Conclusion: Preliminary results suggest a role of ultrasound to detect peripheral manifestations of fibrotic ILDs, such as reticulation and honeycombing. This assessment protocol can be adopted effectively by clinicians, such as rheumatologists, to evaluate lung involvement by CTDs. A larger study is necessary to achieve more robust and generalizable results as a screening tool.http://www.arprheumatology.com/files/article/1576_a_feasibility_study_of_a_short_file.pdfconnective tissue disease, connective tissue-related interstitial lung diseaseinterstitial lung diseaseconnective tissue diseasesultrasonographydiagnosis |
| spellingShingle | Sara Braga André Carvalho Márcio Rodrigues Pedro Madureira Raquel Miriam Ferreira André Terras Alexandre Natália Melo Patrícia Caetano Mota António Morais Hélder Novais Bastos A feasibility study of a short lung ultrasound protocol as a screening method for fibrotic interstitial lung disease ARP Rheumatology connective tissue disease, connective tissue-related interstitial lung disease interstitial lung disease connective tissue diseases ultrasonography diagnosis |
| title | A feasibility study of a short lung ultrasound protocol as a screening method for fibrotic interstitial lung disease |
| title_full | A feasibility study of a short lung ultrasound protocol as a screening method for fibrotic interstitial lung disease |
| title_fullStr | A feasibility study of a short lung ultrasound protocol as a screening method for fibrotic interstitial lung disease |
| title_full_unstemmed | A feasibility study of a short lung ultrasound protocol as a screening method for fibrotic interstitial lung disease |
| title_short | A feasibility study of a short lung ultrasound protocol as a screening method for fibrotic interstitial lung disease |
| title_sort | feasibility study of a short lung ultrasound protocol as a screening method for fibrotic interstitial lung disease |
| topic | connective tissue disease, connective tissue-related interstitial lung disease interstitial lung disease connective tissue diseases ultrasonography diagnosis |
| url | http://www.arprheumatology.com/files/article/1576_a_feasibility_study_of_a_short_file.pdf |
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