Automated CT quantification methods for the assessment of interstitial lung disease in collagen vascular diseases: A systematic review

Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is highly prevalent in collagen vascular diseases and reduction of ILD is an important therapeutic target. To that end, reliable quantification of pulmonary disease severity is of great significance. This study systematically reviewed the literature on automated computed tomography (CT) quantification methods for assessing ILD in collagen vascular diseases. PRISMA-DTA guidelines for systematic reviews were used and 19 original research articles up to January 2018 were included based on a MEDLINE/Pubmed and Embase search. Quantitative CT methods were categorized as histogram assessment (12 studies) or pattern/texture recognition (7 studies). R-2 for correlation with visual ILD scoring ranged from 0.143 (p < 0.01) to 0.687 (p < 0.0001), for FVC from 0.048 (p < 0.0001) to 0.504 (p < 0.0001) and for DLCO from 0.015 (p= 0.61) to 0.449 (p < 0.0001). Automated CT methods are independent of reader's expertise and are a promising tool in the quantification of ILD in collagen vascular disease patients.