Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40210443›Full record

ArticleThorax2025

Impact of quantitative radiological features of interstitial lung disease on immunomodulatory treatment response in three autoimmune interstitial lung disease cohorts.

Scott M Matson, Grace Hyun J Kim, Stephen M Humphries, Michael D Roth, Jonathan Goldin, Donald P Tashkin, Mei Leng, Bryant R England, Joyce S Lee, Elizabeth R Volkmann

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Thorax, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
–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

8 citing papers in PubMed.

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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

10 authors.

Scott M MatsonDivision of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, The University of Kansas School of Medicine, Kansas City, Kansas, USA smatson@kumc.edu.ORCID 0000-0002-3748-9597
Grace Hyun J KimDepartment of Radiological Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Stephen M HumphriesDepartment of Radiology, National Jewish Health, Denver, Colorado, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-5113-4530
Michael D RothDepartment of Medicine and Health Sciences Research, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Jonathan GoldinDepartment of Radiologic Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-3007-9947
Donald P TashkinDepartment of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-5607-4872
Mei LengDepartment of Medicine, Division of Internal Medicine and Health Sciences Research, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Bryant R EnglandMedicine, Division of Rheumatology & Immunology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE USA and Veterans Affairs Nebraska-Western Iowa Health Care System, Omaha, NE, USA, Omaha, Nebraska, USA.
Joyce S LeeDepartment of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary Sciences and Critical Care Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Campus, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
Elizabeth R VolkmannDepartment of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-3750-6569

Funding

Using Integrated Omics to Identify Dysfunctional Genetic Mechanisms Influencing Schizophrenia and Sleep DisturbancesP20GM130423 · NIGMS · UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS MEDICAL CENTER · PI Devin Charles Koestler · 2019 to 2026
$21.5M
Identifying predictors of treatment response in systemic sclerosis-related interstitial lung diseaseK23HL150237 · NHLBI · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · PI VOLKMANN, ELIZABETH R · 2020 to 2024
$910k
NHLBI NIH HHS K23 HL150237NIGMS NIH HHS P20 GM130423
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe defining radiological features of autoimmune interstitial lung disease (ILD) are ground glass opacification (GGO) and fibrosis. The associations between these features and physiological response to immunomodulation remain unclear.

methodsThis study leveraged three autoimmune ILD cohorts: two with systemic sclerosis (SSc) and one with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) which were selected for inherent differences in fibrotic extents/patterns. Linear regression models examined associations between baseline quantitative GGO, fibrosis, their ratio and forced vital capacity (FVC)%-predicted changes after 12 months of immunomodulatory therapy.

resultsPatients with SSc-ILD (N=262) exhibited a higher GGO-to-fibrosis ratio compared with patients with RA-ILD (N=130) (mean ratio 3.0 vs 0.25). Increased GGO-to-fibrosis was not associated with improved FVC%-predicted in any cohort. Conversely, in patients with SSc-ILD treated with cyclophosphamide (CYC), increased fibrosis (estimate 0.17 (95% CI 0.003, 0.33); p=0.04) and increased GGO (estimate 0.15 (95% CI 0.004, 0.30); p=0.044) were both significantly associated with FVC% improvement. Given the negative direction of the estimate for GGO-to-fibrosis ratio (estimate -0.33 (95% CI -0.61, -0.06); p=0.016), CYC was associated with greater FVC% improvement in patients with a higher degree of fibrosis relative to GGO. No significant correlation was seen in patients with SSc-ILD treated with mycophenolate (N=56) or in patients with RA-ILD treated with immunomodulation (N=130). DISCUSSION: Increased quantitative GGO relative to fibrosis was not significantly associated with improved response to immunomodulation in patients with RA-ILD and SSc-ILD. However, increased quantitative fibrosis and GGO extent were associated with improved response to CYC in SSc-ILD. More research is needed to understand how to use radiological features to guide treatment selection in ILD.

Indexed as

Arthritis, RheumatoidAutoimmune DiseasesImmunomodulating AgentsLung Diseases, InterstitialScleroderma, SystemicAgedCyclophosphamideFemaleHumansImmunosuppressive AgentsMaleMiddle AgedTomography, X-Ray ComputedTreatment OutcomeVital CapacityCyclophosphamideImmunomodulating AgentsImmunosuppressive AgentsInterstitial FibrosisRheumatoid lung disease

Identifiers

PMID40210443
PMCPMC12263334

What OpenQuestion holds

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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.