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Updated: Jun 3, 2025
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Imaging Features of Systemic Sclerosis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease
Published on: June 16, 2020
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Longitudinal association between nailfold capillaroscopy and incident interstitial lung disease: A EUSTAR database
Arthiha Velauthapillai1, Jeska K de Vries-Bouwstra2, Joerg Henes3
1Department of Rheumatology, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
Journal of Scleroderma and Related Disorders
|January 8, 2025
Summary
Worsening nailfold capillaroscopy patterns significantly increase the annual risk of developing interstitial lung disease (ILD). However, a severe scleroderma pattern at baseline does not predict long-term ILD risk in patients.
Area of Science:
- Rheumatology
- Pulmonology
- Dermatology
Background:
- Nailfold capillaroscopy (NFC) is a non-invasive technique to visualize microvascular changes.
- Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a major complication in connective tissue diseases.
- Early detection and risk stratification for ILD are crucial for patient management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the association between baseline NFC patterns and the 5-year risk of incident ILD.
- To evaluate the association between changes in NFC patterns and the risk of developing ILD.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of adult patients from the EUSTAR database meeting ACR-EULAR criteria.
- Patients had a scleroderma NFC pattern and confirmed absence of ILD at baseline.
- Follow-up for up to 5 years using Cox proportional hazards and mixed logistic regression models.
Main Results:
- No significant association was found between baseline NFC pattern severity and 5-year ILD risk (HR 1.09, p=0.47).
- An increasing severity of NFC pattern over time was associated with a significantly increased annual risk of incident ILD (OR 3.76, p<0.01).
Conclusions:
- Worsening NFC patterns are strongly associated with an increased annual risk of developing ILD.
- Baseline scleroderma NFC patterns do not predict long-term ILD risk.
