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<article xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" dtd-version="1.0" article-type="pulmonology" lang="en">
<front>
<journal-meta>
<journal-id journal-id-type="publisher">JOHS</journal-id>
<journal-id journal-id-type="nlm-ta">Journ of Health Scien</journal-id>
<journal-title-group>
<journal-title>Journal of HealthCare Sciences</journal-title>
<abbrev-journal-title abbrev-type="pubmed">Journ of Health Scien</abbrev-journal-title>
</journal-title-group>
<issn pub-type="ppub">2231-2196</issn>
<issn pub-type="opub">0975-5241</issn>
<publisher>
<publisher-name>Radiance Research Academy</publisher-name>
</publisher>
</journal-meta>
<article-meta>
<article-id pub-id-type="publisher-id">475</article-id>
<article-id pub-id-type="doi">http://dx.doi.org/10.52533/JOHS.2025.51215</article-id>
<article-id pub-id-type="doi-url"/>
<article-categories>
<subj-group subj-group-type="heading">
<subject>Pulmonology</subject>
</subj-group>
</article-categories>
<title-group>
<article-title>Silent Interstitial Lung Disease in Early Autoimmune Disorders: A Systematic Review
</article-title>
</title-group>
<contrib-group>
<contrib contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Sadaruddin</surname>
<given-names>Muhammad Arshad</given-names>
</name>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Alwadie</surname>
<given-names>Batool Mubarak Abdullah</given-names>
</name>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Alyami</surname>
<given-names>Hussain Mohammed</given-names>
</name>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Kuzman</surname>
<given-names>Hannen Ali</given-names>
</name>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Algreai</surname>
<given-names>Saleh Yahya</given-names>
</name>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Alsharif</surname>
<given-names>Khaled Faisal</given-names>
</name>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Alyami</surname>
<given-names>Fatimah Hammad</given-names>
</name>
</contrib>
</contrib-group>
<pub-date pub-type="ppub">
<day>30</day>
<month>11</month>
<year>-0001</year>
</pub-date>
<volume>5</volume>
<issue>12</issue>
<fpage>823</fpage>
<lpage>838</lpage>
<permissions>
<copyright-statement>This article is copyright of Popeye Publishing, 2009</copyright-statement>
<copyright-year>2009</copyright-year>
<license license-type="open-access" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">
<license-p>This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) Licence. You may share and adapt the material, but must give appropriate credit to the source, provide a link to the licence, and indicate if changes were made.</license-p>
</license>
</permissions>
<abstract>
<p>Silent or subclinical interstitial lung disease (ILD) is increasingly recognized in patients with early-stage autoimmune disorders, often preceding clinically apparent symptoms. While ILD is a well-documented complication of systemic autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic sclerosis (SSc), and idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM), its asymptomatic form remains underdiagnosed and poorly characterized. This systematic review aimed to systematically review and synthesize current evidence on the prevalence, diagnostic features, radiologic and pulmonary function findings, associated risk factors, and clinical implications of silent ILD in patients with early autoimmune diseases. Following PRISMA guidelines, a comprehensive literature search was conducted across PubMed, ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Web of Science databases from 2014 to 2025. Studies were included if they investigated asymptomatic ILD in patients diagnosed with autoimmune disease within five years, using high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) or pulmonary function tests (PFTs). Quality assessment was conducted using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS). Nine studies met the inclusion criteria, with reported prevalence of silent ILD ranging from 1.9% to 19.3%. HRCT frequently revealed subpleural fibrosis, traction bronchiectasis, and usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP) patterns in asymptomatic patients. Diffusing capacity of the lungs for carbon monoxide (DLCO) was consistently reduced, even when spirometry values remained within normal ranges, indicating early alveolar-capillary dysfunction. Subpleural distribution and fibrotic HRCT patterns were associated with higher progression risk. Despite the absence of symptoms, many patients exhibited structural and functional evidence of early lung involvement. Silent ILD is a prevalent and clinically significant manifestation in early autoimmune disease, often detectable only through imaging and gas exchange testing. Its presence correlates with radiologic patterns predictive of disease progression, underscoring the need for routine screening in high-risk populations. Standardized diagnostic criteria and prospective studies are urgently needed to guide early identification, monitoring strategies, and intervention timing to mitigate long-term pulmonary complications.
</p>
</abstract>
<kwd-group>
<kwd>Silent ILD</kwd>
<kwd> subclinical ILD</kwd>
<kwd> autoimmune disease</kwd>
<kwd> rheumatoid arthritis</kwd>
<kwd> systemic sclerosis</kwd>
<kwd> interstitial lung abnormalities</kwd>
<kwd> early detection</kwd>
</kwd-group>
</article-meta>
</front>
</article>