Screening and Monitoring for ILD in Systemic Autoimmune Rheumatic Diseases

The newly released 2023 ACR guidelines emphasize the importance of screening and monitoring for interstitial lung disease (ILD) in people with systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases. The guidelines recommend screening patients with systemic sclerosis, inflammatory myopathies, mixed connective tissue disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and Shogren's syndrome. The guidelines suggest using pulmonary function tests (including lung volumes and diffusion capacity) and high-resolution CT scans for screening and monitoring. Additionally, ambulatory desaturation testing is recommended to be performed in collaboration with pulmonologists for co-management of patients with diagnosed ILD. The guidelines also address the challenges of defining patient populations, determining screening frequencies, and choosing appropriate monitoring tests.