Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38950694›Full record

ArticleChest2024

Clinical Impact of Telomere Length Testing for Interstitial Lung Disease.

David Zhang, Christina M Eckhardt, Claire McGroder, Shannon Benesh, Julie Porcelli, Christopher Depender, Kelsie Bogyo, Joseph Westrich, Amanda Thomas-Wilson, Vaidehi Jobanputra and 1 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Chest, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
14citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

14 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Guideline
  2. Article
  3. Review
  4. Article
  5. Review
  6. Article
  7. Review
  8. Pulmonary Fibrosis-Focusing on the Future: Aspen Lung Conference 2024 Summary.American journal of respiratory cell and molecular biology · 2025
    Article
  9. Review
  10. Article
  11. Initiation of antifibrotic treatment in fibrosing interstitial lung disease: is the clock ticking till proven progression?European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society · 2025
    Review
  12. Article
  13. Article
  14. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

David ZhangDepartment of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY. Electronic address: dz2409@cumc.columbia.edu.
Christina M EckhardtDepartment of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY.
Claire McGroderDepartment of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY.
Shannon BeneshDepartment of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY.
Julie PorcelliNewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, New York, NY.
Christopher DependerDepartment of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY.
Kelsie BogyoDepartment of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY.
Joseph WestrichDepartment of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY.
Amanda Thomas-WilsonNew York Genome Center, New York, NY.
Vaidehi JobanputraDepartment of Pathology and Cell Biology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY; New York Genome Center, New York, NY.
Christine K GarciaDepartment of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY.

Funding

Clinical and Translational Science AwardUL1TR001873 · NCATS · COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · PI REILLY, MUREDACH P · 2016 to 2025
$99.0M
Institutional Career Development CoreKL2TR001874 · NCATS · COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · PI GENKINGER, JEANINE M., SHIMBO, DAICHI · 2016 to 2025
$13.6M
Pulmonary Fibrosis and Telomerase DysfunctionR01HL093096 · NHLBI · UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER · PI GARCIA, CHRISTINE KIM · 2009 to 2024
$6.9M
Multi-omic profiling of IPF endotypesK08HL169926 · NHLBI · COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · PI Da Zhang · 2024 to 2026
$498k
NCATS NIH HHS KL2 TR001874NCATS NIH HHS UL1 TR001873NHLBI NIH HHS K08 HL169926NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL093096
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundShortened telomere length (TL) is a genomic risk factor for fibrotic interstitial lung disease (ILD), but its role in clinical management is unknown. RESEARCH QUESTION: What is the clinical impact of TL testing on the management of ILD? STUDY DESIGN AND

methodsPatients were evaluated in the Columbia University ILD clinic and underwent Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments-certified TL testing by flow cytometry and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FlowFISH) as part of clinical treatment. Short TL was defined as below the 10th age-adjusted percentile for either granulocytes or lymphocytes by FlowFISH. Patients were offered genetic counseling and testing if they had short TL or a family history of ILD. FlowFISH TL was compared with research quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) TL measurement.

resultsA total of 108 patients underwent TL testing, including those with clinical features of short telomere syndrome such as familial pulmonary fibrosis (50%) or extrapulmonary manifestations in the patient (25%) or a relative (41%). The overall prevalence of short TL was 46% and was similar across clinical ILD diagnoses. The number of short telomere clinical features was independently associated with detecting short TL (OR, 2.00; 95% CI, 1.27-3.32). TL testing led to clinical treatment changes for 35 patients (32%), most commonly resulting in reduction or avoidance of immunosuppression. Of the patients who underwent genetic testing (n = 34), a positive or candidate diagnostic finding in telomere-related genes was identified in 10 patients (29%). Inclusion of TL testing below the 1st percentile helped reclassify eight of nine variants of uncertain significance into actionable findings. The quantitative polymerase chain reaction test correlated with FlowFISH, but age-adjusted percentile cutoffs may not be equivalent between the two assays.

interpretationIncorporating TL testing in ILD impacted clinical management and led to the discovery of new actionable genetic variants.

Indexed as

In Situ Hybridization, FluorescenceLung Diseases, InterstitialTelomereTelomere ShorteningAgedFemaleFlow CytometryHumansMaleMiddle Agedgenetic counselinggenomicsidiopathic pulmonary fibrosisprecision medicinepulmonary fibrosistelomere

Identifiers

PMID38950694
PMCPMC11562654

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.