There may be a greater male predilection with onset of lung disease typically occurring in the 5th to 6th decades of life 5.
Radiographic features
CT
Four major radiographic patterns have been identified in patients with RA-ILD which include 1:
usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP)-like pattern with bilateral subpleural reticulation with or without honeycombing: considered to be a hallmark of worse prognosis 2
1. Kim E, Collard H, King T. Rheumatoid Arthritis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease: The Relevance of Histopathologic and Radiographic Pattern. Chest. 2009;136(5):1397-405. doi:10.1378/chest.09-0444 - Pubmed
2. Rojas-Serrano J, Herrera-Bringas D, Pérez-Román D, Pérez-Dorame R, Mateos-Toledo H, Mejía M. Rheumatoid Arthritis-Related Interstitial Lung Disease (RA-ILD): Methotrexate and the Severity of Lung Disease Are Associated to Prognosis. Clin Rheumatol. 2017;36(7):1493-500. doi:10.1007/s10067-017-3707-5 - Pubmed
3. Spagnolo P, Lee J, Sverzellati N, Rossi G, Cottin V. The Lung in Rheumatoid Arthritis: Focus on Interstitial Lung Disease. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2018;70(10):1544-54. doi:10.1002/art.40574 - Pubmed
5. Manfredi A, Cassone G, Luppi F et al. Rheumatoid Arthritis Related Interstitial Lung Disease. Expert Rev Clin Immunol. 2021;17(5):485-97. doi:10.1080/1744666X.2021.1905524 - Pubmed
6. Suha Kadura & Ganesh Raghu. Rheumatoid Arthritis-Interstitial Lung Disease: Manifestations and Current Concepts in Pathogenesis and Management. European Respiratory Review. 2021;30(160):210011. doi:10.1183/16000617.0011-2021 - Pubmed