Global Lung Initiative equations for pulmonary hypertension screening in systemic sclerosis

Extract

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a connective tissue disease characterised by widespread vasculopathy and excessive fibrosis in multiple organs, including the lungs [1]. The most frequent pulmonary involvement in SSc is interstitial lung disease (ILD), but the most harmful is pulmonary hypertension (PH), a complication found in about 10% of SSc patients [2]. In patients with SSc, early diagnosis of and prompt therapy for PH (either isolated or associated with ILD) are beneficial from a prognostic standpoint and recommendations for active screening of PH in SSc have therefore been established [3].