Abstract

Autoantibodies specific for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in patients with interstitial lung disease but no clinically apparent articular RA

Author(s): Barton Oliver

The goal of this study was to find rheumatoid arthritis-related autoantibodies in people who had interstitial lung disease but no particular findings to support the idea that RA-related autoimmunity may arise in nonarticular locations like the lung. This was a review outline survey using center information bases of patients with ILD to recognize cases with lung sickness, RA-related autoantibody inspiration, and no clinical proof of articular RA. There were four patients who had ILD, RF, and anti-CCP positivity but no particular RA findings. The average age at diagnosis of ILD for all four patients was 70 years old, and they were all male. All of them had smoked in the past. Three patients were diagnosed with ILD and died within two years, but none of them ever developed articular symptoms consistent with RA; after ceasing immunosuppressive treatment for several months, the final case fulfilled all criteria for articular RA. Smokers can have RF and anti-CCP even if there is no clinical evidence of articular RA. In one case, symptomatic autoantibody positivity came before articular RA. These findings suggest that immunologic interactions in the lung may cause RA-specific autoimmunity and may be linked to environmental factors like smoking.