HRCT evaluation of patients with interstitial lung disease: comparison of the 2018 and 2011 diagnostic guidelines

Clinically Relevant Biomarkers in Connective Tissue Disease-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease

Interstitial lung disease (ILD) complicates connective tissue disease (CTD) with variable incidence and is a leading cause of death in these patients. To improve CTD-ILD outcomes, early recognition and management of ILD is critical. Blood-based and radiologic biomarkers that assist in the diagnosis CTD-ILD have long been studied. Recent studies, including -omic investigations, have also begun to identify biomarkers that may help prognosticate such patients. This review provides an overview of clinically relevant biomarkers in patients with CTD-ILD, highlighting recent advances to assist in the diagnosis and prognostication of CTD-ILD.

Differentiating inflammatory and malignant pulmonary lesions on 3T lung MRI with radiomics of apparent diffusion coefficient maps and T2w derived radiomic feature maps

Background

Differentiating inflammatory from malignant lung lesions continues to be challenging in clinical routine, frequently requiring invasive methods like biopsy. Therefore, we aimed to investigate if inflammatory and malignant pulmonary lesions could be distinguished noninvasively using radiomics of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) maps and radiomic feature maps calculated from T2-weighted (T2w) 3 Tesla (3T) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the lung.

Methods

Fifty-four patients with an unclear pulmonary lesion on computed tomography (CT) were prospectively included and examined by 3T MRI with T2w and diffusion-weighted sequences (b values of 50 and 800). ADC maps were calculated automatically. All patients underwent biopsy or bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL). Sixteen patients were excluded (e.g., motion artifacts), leaving 19 patients each with malignant and inflammatory pulmonary lesions. Target lesions were defined by biopsy or as the largest lesion (BAL-based pathogen detection), and two readers placed volumes of interest (VOIs) around the lesions on T2w images and ADC maps. One hundred and seven features were conventionally extracted from the ADC maps using PyRadiomics. T2w images were converted to 107 parametric feature maps per patient using a PyRadiomics-based, pretested software tool developed by our group. VOIs were copied from T2w images to T2 maps for feature quantification. Features were tested for significant differences using the Mann-Whitney U-test. Diagnostic performance was assessed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis and interreader agreement by intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs).

Results

Fifty-eight features derived from ADC maps differed significantly between malignant and inflammatory pulmonary lesions, with areas under the curve (AUCs) >0.90 for 5 and >0.80 for 27 features, compared with 67 features from T2 maps (5 features with AUCs >0.80). ICCs were excellent throughout.

Conclusions

ADC and T2 maps differentiate inflammatory and malignant pulmonary lesions with outstanding (ADC) and excellent (T2w derived feature maps) diagnostic performance. MRI could thus guide the further diagnostic workup and a timely initiation of the appropriate therapy.

Developing the Lung Graph-Based Machine Learning Model for Identification of Fibrotic Interstitial Lung Diseases

Accurate detection of fibrotic interstitial lung disease (f-ILD) is conducive to early intervention. Our aim was to develop a lung graph-based machine learning model to identify f-ILD. A total of 417 HRCTs from 279 patients with confirmed ILD (156 f-ILD and 123 non-f-ILD) were included in this study. A lung graph-based machine learning model based on HRCT was developed for aiding clinician to diagnose f-ILD. In this approach, local radiomics features were extracted from an automatically generated geometric atlas of the lung and used to build a series of specific lung graph models. Encoding these lung graphs, a lung descriptor was gained and became as a characterization of global radiomics feature distribution to diagnose f-ILD. The Weighted Ensemble model showed the best predictive performance in cross-validation. The classification accuracy of the model was significantly higher than that of the three radiologists at both the CT sequence level and the patient level. At the patient level, the diagnostic accuracy of the model versus radiologists A, B, and C was 0.986 (95% CI 0.959 to 1.000), 0.918 (95% CI 0.849 to 0.973), 0.822 (95% CI 0.726 to 0.904), and 0.904 (95% CI 0.836 to 0.973), respectively. There was a statistically significant difference in AUC values between the model and 3 physicians (p < 0.05). The lung graph-based machine learning model could identify f-ILD, and the diagnostic performance exceeded radiologists which could aid clinicians to assess ILD objectively.

Defining the pathway to timely diagnosis and treatment of interstitial lung disease: a US Delphi survey

INTRODUCTION

Timely diagnosis of interstitial lung disease (ILD) is limited by obstacles in the current patient pathway. Misdiagnosis and delays are common and may lead to a significant burden of diagnostic procedures and worse outcomes. This Delphi survey aimed to identify consensus on the key steps that facilitate the patient journey to an accurate ILD diagnosis and appropriate management in the US.

METHODS

A modified Delphi analysis was conducted, comprising three online surveys based on a comprehensive literature search. The surveys spanned five domains (guidelines, community screening, diagnosis, management and specialist referral) and were completed by a panel of US physicians, including primary care physicians and pulmonologists practising in community or academic settings. A priori definitions of consensus agreement were median scores of 2-3 (agree strongly/agree), with an IQR of 0-1 for questions on a 7-point Likert scale from -3 to 3, or ≥80% agreement for binary questions.

RESULTS

Forty-nine panellists completed the surveys and 62 statements reached consensus agreement. There was consensus agreement on what should be included in the primary care evaluation of patients with suspected ILD and the next steps following workup. Regarding diagnosis in community pulmonology care, consensus agreement was reached on the requisition and reporting of high-resolution CT scans and the appropriate circumstances for holding multidisciplinary discussions. Additionally, there was consensus agreement on which symptoms and comorbidities should be monitored, the frequency of consultations and the assessment of disease progression. Regarding specialist referral, consensus agreement was reached on which patients should receive priority access to ILD centres and the contents of the referral package.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings clarify the most common issues that should merit further evaluation for ILD and help define the steps for timely, accurate diagnosis and appropriate collaborative specialty management of patients with ILD.

Riociguat in patients with early diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis (RISE-SSc): open-label, long-term extension of a phase 2b, randomised, placebo-controlled trial

BACKGROUND

The phase 2b Riociguat Safety and Efficacy in Patients with Diffuse Cutaneous Systemic Sclerosis (RISE-SSc) trial investigated riociguat versus placebo in early diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis. The long-term extension evaluated safety and exploratory treatment effects for an additional year.

METHODS

Patients were enrolled to RISE-SSc between Jan 15, 2015, and Dec 8, 2016. Those who completed the 52-week, randomised, parallel-group, placebo-controlled, double-blind phase were eligible for the long-term extension. Patients originally assigned to riociguat continued therapy (riociguat-riociguat group). Those originally assigned to placebo were switched to riociguat (placebo-riociguat group), adjusted up to 2·5 mg three times daily in a 10-week, double-blind dose-adjustment phase, followed by an open-label phase. Statistical analyses were descriptive. Safety including adverse events and serious adverse events was assessed in the long-term safety analysis set (all patients randomly assigned and treated with study medication in the double-blind phase who continued study medication in the long-term extension). The RISE-SSc trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02283762.

FINDINGS

In total, 87 (72%) of 121 patients in the main RISE-SSc study entered the long-term extension (riociguat-riociguat, n=42; placebo-riociguat, n=45). 65 (75%) of 87 patients were women, 22 (25%) were men, and 62 (71%) were White. Overall, 82 (94%) of 87 patients in the long-term extension had an adverse event; most (66 [76%] of 87) were of mild to moderate severity, with no increase in pulmonary-related serious adverse events in patients with interstitial lung disease.

INTERPRETATION

No new safety signals were observed with long-term riociguat in patients with early diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis. Study limitations include the absence of a comparator group in this open-label extension study.

FUNDING

Bayer and Merck Sharp & Dohme.

Multiform-based Baduanjin exercise prevention and treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

INTRODUCTION

In this study, we will combine the traditional Baduanjin with Yijin Jing and Wuqinxi to create an optimized Baduanjin exercise program with three different forms (vertical, sitting, and horizontal) to adapt to idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) patients in vairous stages of the disease. The purpose of this study is to explore and compare the therapeutic effects of this multi-form Baduanjin, traditional Baduanjin, and resistance training on lung function and limb motor function in IPF patients. The goal of this study is to prove a novel optimal exercise prescription strategy of Baduanjin exercise for improving and protecting lung function in IPF patients.

METHODS/DESIGN

A single-blind and randomized controlled trial is used to conduct this study, while the randomization list will be generated using a computerized random number generator and opaque sealed envelopes with group allocation will be prepared. It will be strictly followed to blind the outcome assessors. and until the experiment's conclusion, participants won't know which group they are enrolled in. Patients between the ages of 35 and 80 who have stable diseases and have not regularly practiced Baduanjin exercise in the past will be included. They are divvied up into the following five groups at random: (1) The conventional care group (control group, CG), (2) The traditional Baduanjin exercise group (TG), (3) The modified Baduanjin exercise group (IG), (4) The resistance exercise group (RG) (5) The modified Baduanjin exercise combined with resistance exercise group (IRG). Those CG participants only received the usual treatment, while TC, IG, and RG participants exercised 1 h twice a day for 3 months. MRG participants will have a 3-month intervention with 1 h of Modified Baduanjin Exercise and 1 H of Resistance Training for each day. Every week, all groups underwent will supervis one-day training, with the exception of the control group. The Pulmonary Function Testing (PFT), HRCT, and 6MWT are the main outcome variables. The St. George Respiratory Questionnaire and mMRC are used as secondary outcome measures.

DISCUSSION

This study may produce a new Baduanjin exercise prescription that is user-friendly, simple to execute, more targeted, and adaptable. Because it consists of three forms, including vertical, sitting, and horizontal, it is more adaptable to the various disease stages and actual situations of IPF patients and may compensate for the shortcomings of conventional pulmonary rehabilitation and traditional Baduanjin.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, ChiCTR2200055559 . Registered on 12 January 2022.

Clinically Relevant Biomarkers in Connective Tissue Disease-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease

Interstitial lung disease (ILD) complicates connective tissue disease (CTD) with variable incidence and is a leading cause of death in these patients. To improve CTD-ILD outcomes, early recognition and management of ILD is critical. Blood-based and radiologic biomarkers that assist in the diagnosis CTD-ILD have long been studied. Recent studies, including -omic investigations, have also begun to identify biomarkers that may help prognosticate such patients. This review provides an overview of clinically relevant biomarkers in patients with CTD-ILD, highlighting recent advances to assist in the diagnosis and prognostication of CTD-ILD.

Krebs von den Lungen-6 (KL-6) as a diagnostic marker for pulmonary fibrosis: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is a respiratory disease with end-stage pathological changes of interstitial lung disease that severely affects the survival of patients. Among the many biomarkers that have been identified, serum Krebs von den Lungen-6 (KL-6) is by far the most frequent marker for detecting pulmonary fibrosis.

METHODS

We searched Medline (Pubmed), Embase, Web of science, and Cochrane databases for articles published between inception and August 2022 in order to explore the association between KL-6 and pulmonary fibrosis. Characteristics of patients and studies included in the articles were extracted by two independent investigators according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. We reflected the accuracy of KL-6 in distinguishing between PF and non-PF by calculating sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, and area under the curve by SROC curves. The presence of heterogeneity was reflected by I² in the forest plot, and then the source of heterogeneity was investigated by meta-regression.

RESULTS

We searched for 939 research papers, of which 16 met the inclusion criteria. Meta-analysis showed a sensitivity of 0.87 (95 % CI: 0.78-0.92), specificity of 0.91 (95 % CI: 0.86-0.95), positive likelihood ratio of 10.2 (95 % CI: 6.1, 17.0) and negative likelihood ratio of 0.14 (95 % CI: 0.08, 0.25) for KL-6 in diagnosing pulmonary fibrosis. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.95 (95 % CI: 0.93-0.97). The results showed significant heterogeneity in both sensitivity and specificity (I² = 94.55 and 91.52, respectively). Meta-regression analysis identified race as the cause of sensitivity heterogeneity and assay methodology as the cause of specificity heterogeneity.

CONCLUSIONS

The analysis of this study suggests that serum KL-6 is a better tool for the diagnosis of pulmonary fibrosis when factors such as disease cause and control group category are not specifically considered.

Observational findings of transbronchial lung biopsy in patients with interstitial lung disease: a retrospective study in Aleppo University Hospital

Clinicians face a significant obstacle when attempting to diagnose interstitial lung disease (ILD) patients. However, a thorough clinical examination together with the proper imaging and diagnostic techniques may provide a reliable diagnosis of a particular kind of ILD, and invasive tests such as rigid bronchoscopy or surgical lung biopsy may not be necessary. The aim of this study is to determine the histologic outcomes of an ILD transbronchial lung biopsy (TBLB) carried out at the university hospital in Aleppo.

Methods

This retrospective cohort research was done between 1 January 2020 and 18 April 2022 at the pulmonary department of Aleppo University Hospital, Syria, using patient records. In our study, 174 patients were examined. We included patients over the age of 18 who were referred or admitted to our department at Aleppo University Hospital after being diagnosed with diffuse parenchymal lung disease based on high-resolution computed tomography and clinical symptoms, while excluding other respiratory diseases such as tuberculosis and coronavirus disease 2019.

Results

Patients in the research were 53±7.1 years old on average. Cough and dyspnea were the most common clinical complaints among the patients, which accounted for 79.12 and 78.16%, respectively. A significant fraction of ground-glass opacity was detected on the high-resolution computed tomography, amounting to 102 (58.62%) and 74 (42.53%) for the reticular lesions, respectively. As a complication there were 40 patients with bleeding, of whom 24 had moderate bleeding, and 11 had major bleeding. We also had three patients with pneumothorax. The diagnostic yield of the TBLB in our ILD patients was 66.66%.

Conclusion

An adequate diagnostic accuracy (66.66%) was detected in the TBLB in confirming the diagnosis of ILD; in addition, the bleeding was the most prevalent complication of this procedure. More interventional studies are needed to compare the diagnostic accuracy of this procedure with other invasive and noninvasive diagnostic methodologies of ILD.

Integrating Clinical Probability into the Diagnostic Approach to Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis: An International Working Group Perspective

BACKGROUND

When considering the diagnosis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), experienced clinicians integrate clinical features that help to differentiate IPF from other fibrosing interstitial lung diseases, thus generating a "pre-test" probability of IPF. The aim of this international working group perspective was to summarize these features using a tabulated approach similar to chest HRCT and histopathologic patterns reported in the international guidelines for the diagnosis of IPF, and to help formally incorporate these clinical likelihoods into diagnostic reasoning to facilitate the diagnosis of IPF.

METHODS

The committee group identified factors that influence the clinical likelihood of a diagnosis of IPF, which was categorized as a pre-test clinical probability of IPF into "high" (70-100%), "intermediate" (30-70%), or "low" (0-30%). After integration of radiological and histopathological features, the post-test probability of diagnosis was categorized into "definite" (90-100%), "high confidence" (70-89%), "low confidence" (51-69%), or "low" (0-50%) probability of IPF.

FINDINGS

A conceptual Bayesian framework was created, integrating the clinical likelihood of IPF ("pre-test probability of IPF") with the HRCT pattern, the histopathology pattern when available, and/or the pattern of observed disease behavior into a "post-test probability of IPF". The diagnostic probability of IPF was expressed using an adapted diagnostic ontology for fibrotic interstitial lung diseases.

INTERPRETATION

The present approach will help incorporate the clinical judgement into the diagnosis of IPF, thus facilitating the application of IPF diagnostic guidelines and, ultimately improving diagnostic confidence and reducing the need for invasive diagnostic techniques.

Interobserver agreement regarding the Fleischner Society diagnostic criteria for usual interstitial pneumonia patterns on computed tomography

Objective

To assess interobserver agreement among radiologists regarding the current Fleischner Society diagnostic criteria for usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP) patterns on computed tomography (CT).

Materials and Methods

Using the Fleischner Society criteria for UIP CT patterns, five raters, working independently, categorized the high-resolution CT (HRCT) scans of 44 patients with interstitial lung disease who underwent lung biopsy. The raters also evaluated the presence, extent, and distribution of the most relevant imaging findings, as well as indicating their level of confidence in the most likely diagnosis and in up to three diagnostic hypotheses.

Results

There was moderate to substantial interobserver agreement regarding the UIP patterns on HRCT—kappa statistic (κ) = 0.59-0.61. Interobserver agreement for the binary scores was substantial (κ = 0.77-0.79), whereas that for the presence of honeycombing was almost perfect (κ = 0.81-0.96). There was agreement regarding at least one of the three diagnostic hypotheses in only 36.4% of the cases. For the level of confidence in the most likely diagnosis, there was only slight to fair agreement (κ = 0.19-0.21).

Conclusion

Interobserver agreement regarding the current Fleischner Society CT criteria for UIP was moderate to substantial among raters with varying levels of experience. There was only slight to fair agreement regarding the diagnostic hypotheses and for the level of confidence in the most likely diagnosis.

Intelligent Enhancement Algorithm-Based High Resolution CT Image in Evaluation of Expelling Wind and Relieving Cough and Asthma Prescription on Bronchial Asthma with High Immunoglobulin E Expression

The therapeutic effect of expelling wind and relieving cough and asthma prescription on bronchial asthma with high immunoglobulin E (IgE) expression was studied based on high resolution CT (HRCT) images of intelligent enhancement algorithm. 90 patients with bronchial asthma were randomly divided into control group ( $n=45$ ) and therapy group ( $n=45$ ). The control group was given budesonide inhalation. The therapy group was treated with expelling wind and relieving cough and asthma prescription on the basis of the treatment in the control group. Both groups were given 1 month of treatment time. The scanned images were processed by image enhancement algorithm, and the image quality and distribution separation measurement (DSM) were used as image evaluation indicators. The bronchial wall thickness (WT), inner diameter (L), wall area (WA), and percentage of wall area (WA%) were used as quantitative indicators of airway remodeling. The changes of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) score before and after treatment were recorded and analyzed. The changes of serum IgE indicators before and after treatment were recorded. Results: the image quality of HRCT image enhancement algorithm was better, and the DSM was 36.7 larger than that of the control group. It was found that after 1 month of treatment, the TCM symptom score of the therapy group was lower than that of the control group ( $P<0.05$ ), and compared with the control group, the IgE level of the therapy group was also reduced. Meanwhile, compared with the control group, the WT of segmental bronchial wall in the therapy group decreased, and the WT of left apical bronchus was smaller than that in the control group ( $P<0.05$ ), and the WT of subsegmental bronchus decreased significantly ( $P<0.05$ ). The $L$ of segmental bronchus and subsegmental bronchus in the therapy group was wider ( $P<0.05$ ). The WA of segmental bronchus and subsegmental bronchus decreased, but there was no statistical significance ( $P>0.05$ ). Compared with the control group, the WA percentage of segmental bronchus and the WA percentage of subsegmental bronchus in the therapy group were significantly lower ( $P<0.05$ ). In conclusion, image enhancement algorithm can improve the HRCT image quality of patients with bronchial asthma, which is helpful to improve the diagnostic efficiency in clinical treatment. Expelling wind and relieving cough and asthma prescription has a better therapeutic effect on bronchial asthma with high IgE expression.

Etiologic Profile of Older Children With Diffuse Radiological Changes in Eastern China

OBJECTIVE

To analyze the etiology of chest diffuse radiological changes (DRC) in children older than 2 years.

METHODS

A retrospective study was conducted on a primary cohort of children with DRC underwent high resolution computed tomography (HRCT).

RESULTS

DRC mainly included bronchial wall thickening, interlobular septal thickening, pleural thickening, ground glass opacity, mosaic perfusion, reticular & linear opacities, nodular opacity, and tree-in-bud. Of the identified 457 children with DRC, 83 of children older than 2 years with DRC were included in the present study. Ground glass opacity (53, 63.9%) and reticular & linear opacities (44, 53.0%) were frequently identified findings of HRCT, and no tree-in-bud pattern was observed. By contrast, among children with DRC by M. pneumoniae (n = 64), bronchial wall thickening (33, 51.6%), and mosaic perfusion (17, 26.6%) were common patterns of HRCT in addition to ground glass opacity (36, 56.3%). Most of etiologies were connective tissue disease (24, 28.9%), followed by diffuse alveolar hemorrhage syndrome (9, 10.8%), Langerhans cell histiocytosis (7, 8.4%), and recurrent aspiration (6, 7.2%).

CONCLUSIONS

This study adds further insights into the role of HRCT in diagnosing childhood interstitial lung diseases, indirectly reflecting disease compositions.