Lung Ultrasound as a Screening Method for Interstitial Lung Disease in Patients With Systemic Sclerosis.

Background: Patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) undergo chest radiographs and high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) of the thorax both for interstitial lung disease (ILD) detection and for disease progression monitoring.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess whether lung ultrasound (LUS) is a useful screening tool for ILD in patients with SSc in comparison with HRCT.

Methods: This was a longitudinal cohort study carried out from December 2015 to April 2016.