Risk Factors and Biomarkers of RA-ILD

Abstract

Lung disease in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is one of the leading causes of death in RA patients [1]; interstitial lung disease (ILD) is the most common clinical mani- festation of lung involvement in RA and the only complication of RA increasing in prevalence [2] with substantial risk for progressive morbidity and mortality [3]. Despite this, RA-ILD often goes unrecognized, highlighting the need for improved recognition and management of disease, including identification of targets for dis- ease prevention; clinical tools that classify early stages of disease, such as clinical prediction models; and a personalized approach to diagnosis and treatment. As such, the focus of this chapter will be on risk factors and protein biomarkers of RA-ILD with a brief discussion on other potential molecular and genetic markers extrapolated from ongoing research in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and other connective tissue disease-ILD (CTD-ILD), such as systemic sclerosis (SSc). RA-ILD