ArticleERJ open research2021
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis cluster analysis highlights diagnostic delay and cardiovascular comorbidity association with outcome.
Article in ERJ open research, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 6 citations in OpenAlex.
- Impact of time to diagnosis in patients with progressive fibrotic ILD: a systematic review.BMJ open respiratory research · 2026Pooled it
- Holistic Management of Pulmonary Fibrosis: A Comprehensive Review.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2026Review
- Pulmonary Hypertension Drives Prognosis in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis: Insights from the European IPF Registry.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Pirfenidone in post-COVID-19 pulmonary fibrosis.The European respiratory journal · 2025Article
- Therapeutic decisions in a cohort of patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis: a multicenter, prospective survey from Poland.Therapeutic advances in chronic disease · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionIdiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) prognosis is heterogeneous despite antifibrotic treatment. Cluster analysis has proven to be a useful tool in identifying interstitial lung disease phenotypes, which has yet to be performed in IPF. The aim of this study is to identify phenotypes of IPF with different prognoses and requirements.
methodsObservational retrospective study including 136 IPF patients receiving antifibrotic treatment between 2012 and 2018. Six patients were excluded due to follow-up in other centres. Cluster analysis of 30 variables was performed using approximate singular value-based tensor decomposition method and comparative statistical analysis.
resultsThe cluster analysis identified three different groups of patients according to disease behaviour and clinical features, including mortality, lung transplant and progression-free survival time after 3-year follow-up. Cluster 1 (n=60) was significantly associated (p=0.02) with higher mortality. Diagnostic delay was the most relevant characteristic of this cluster, as 48% of patients had ≥2 years from first respiratory symptoms to antifibrotic treatment initiation. Cluster 2 (n=22) had the longest progression-free survival time and was correlated to subclinical patients evaluated in the context of incidental findings or familial screening. Cluster 3 (n=48) showed the highest percentage of disease progression without cluster 1 mortality, with metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular comorbidities as the main characteristics.
conclusionThis cluster analysis of IPF patients suggests that diagnostic and treatment delay are the most significant factors associated with mortality, while IPF progression was more related to metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular comorbidities.
Identifiers
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Registered trials
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