FRI0377 High rate of false negatives in the early detection of interstitial lung disease associated with systemic sclerosis by pulmonary function tests

Background Pulmonary function tests (PFT) are recommended and frequently used as a single test for routine screening and early detection of interstitial lung disease (ILD) in systemic sclerosis (SSc). However, more sensitive screening tests might be required for early detection of SSc-ILD and low dose HRCT has been recently developed (1). Objectives (1) To evaluate the sensitivity of PFTs in comparison to HRCT for the detection of SSc-ILD in routine clinical practice, and (2) To identify predictors of patients with normal PFTs but significant SSc-ILD on HRCT. Methods Consecutive SSc patients fulfilling ACR criteria were included in our study. Routine assessment was prospectively done according to EUSTAR guidelinesincluding PFT and HRCT in all patients. ILD on HRCT was graded by an experienced, blinded radiologist as follows: mild < 20%, intermediate =20% and severe > 20%. FVC < 80% was considered restrictive lung function. All baseline variables provided from the patients’ database were considered for separating patients with normal FVC and HRCT without fibrosis (PFT-/HRCT-) from patients with normal FVC and HRCT with fibrosis (PFT-/HRCT+). Parameters with p