Current Rheumatology Reviews - Volume 6, Issue 2, 2010

The issue of interstitial lung disease (ILD) often comes up in the clinical practice of rheumatology. The etiology, risk factors, exacerbating factors, and treatment of ILD in the context of autoimmune diseases is the topic of this month's Current Rheumatology Reports. As laid out by Dr. Matteson in his editorial, research in this field is complicated by the lack of standardized criteria for the diagnosis and the lack of widely accepted Read More

The interstitial lung diseases (ILD) are a heterogeneous group of pulmonary disorders which diffusely affect the lung parenchyma including the small airways and alveolar structures. While many are of unknown cause, others have known clinical associations including infection, a diversity of inhaled, oral or parenteral exposures (including drugs, tobacco smoke, occupational and environmental exposures), and a variety of syst Read More

The idiopathic interstitial pneumonias (IIP) are seven fibro-inflammatory interstitial lung diseases of unknown cause, grouped together because of potentially similar clinical features. Each of the seven has a distinct histologic pattern; however, these patterns are not specific to the IIP, and they provide a framework for defining interstitial lung disease (ILD) of known-cause, including ILD associated with underlying connective tissu Read More

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a systemic, inflammatory disorder with a predilection for young women. A wide array of pulmonary manifestations can occur in patients with SLE, including interstitial lung disease. In this review, we will discuss the scope, pathogenesis, management, and prognosis, along with the clinical and pathologic features of SLE-associated ILD (SLE-ILD).

The lung is one of the most common extra-muscular targets in idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) and interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a prevalent and often devastating manifestation of IIM. IIM-associated ILD (IIM-ILD) contributes to nearly 80% of the mortality in IIM with a reported prevalence of 65% of newly diagnosed IIM cases. Although ILD frequently accompanies clinical and laboratory findings of myositis, overt Read More

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) affects 1-2% of the general population. Although often thought of as primarily a localized inflammatory disorder with associated joint destruction, it is a diffuse systemic disease. Extra-articular manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis can be demonstrated in almost 50% of patients with RA, and include pulmonary, cardiac, ocular, renal, hematologic, and neurologic involvement. In this article, we revi Read More

Sjogren's syndrome (SS), whether primary, or secondary to other autoimmune rheumatic diseases, is classically associated with the sicca complex of keratoconjunctivits and xerostomia. However, extraglandular manifestations are also relatively common, affecting up to 25% of patients. In this article, we discuss respiratory system involvement in SS, with a focus on interstitial lung disease (ILD). We review the histopathologic var Read More

Pulmonary involvement including interstitial lung disease (ILD) is the leading cause of mortality in patients with systemic sclerosis (scleroderma; SSc). This article reviews the current evidence based medicine regarding available therapies for SSc-ILD; discusses the lessons learned from recent SSc-ILD randomized controlled trials (RCTs); and proposes outcome measures and recommendations for design of future RCTs for SSc-ILD.

This review article discusses the proposed methodology that will be utilized to develop core set items for connective tissue disease-associated interstitial lung disease (CTD-ILD). CTD-ILD remains an important enigma in clinical medicine. No consensus exists on measurement of disease activity or what constitutes a significant response to therapeutic interventions. Lack of appropriate measures inhibit effective drug devel Read More

Accuracy of implant positioning and precise reconstruction of leg alignment offers the best way to achieve good long-term results in total knee arthroplasty. Computer instrumentation was developed to overcome the inherent limitations of mechanical instrumentation, improving the final position of the component and restoring the normal mechanical axis of the lower limb. Current navigation systems use either optical or Read More