Diffuse Interstitial Lung Disease in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Abstract

The clinical and physiological features of 18 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus and diffuse interstitial lung infiltrations, along with the histopathologic studies in 4 of these subjects, are analyzed. Seven patients presented with pulmonary symptoms of dyspnea, cough, and chest pain; nine initially had polyarthralgia; one had hemolytic anemia; and one had renal manifestations. Pulmonary function findings were those common to restrictive lung disease, that is, a low vital capacity or a decrease in flow rates not more than proportional to the decrease in vital capacity, hypoxemia, and a low lung diffusion capacity. The histopathological findings showed nonspecific interstitial fibrosis with chronic inflammation in two cases, including one of a honeycomb type: the third case had fibrosis consistent with healed infarcts, and the fourth had multifocal areas of alveolar epithelial hyperplasia. The participation of systemic lupus erythematosus in the disease processes in the lungs could neither be confirmed nor excluded.