Interstitial Lung Disease in Rheumatology

Interstitial lung diseases (ILD) are one of the most frequent organ manifestations in rheumatic diseases and still challenging for diagnosis and management. ILD can be present in different types of rheumatic diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, systemic sclerosis and idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (CTD-ILD). ILDs are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. A careful clinical instrumental and laboratory assessment is necessary. This allows precise classification of the different phenotypes of underlying inflammatory diseases and stratification of the risk of lung involvement and disease progression. There is still a lack of understanding of the underlying mechanisms, but there have been advances in the understanding and management of (CTD-) ILDs in recent years.