Abstract
Focal pulmonary masses in patients suffering from rheumatological diseases cause difficulties in conducting differential diagnosis with neoplastic and infectious processes, primarily with tuberculosis. In many cases, these masses are asymptomatic, being an accidental finding during routine examinations. Focal pulmonary masses can cause various comorbidities, such as hemoptysis and pneumothorax. In rheumatic diseases, the frequency of such masses ranges from 1 to 30%, as well as their incorrect diagnosis commonly leads to a wrong therapy choice. The article presents two clinical cases concerning the detection of focal pulmonary masses, which were observed during the visit to a rheumatologist: in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and with mixed connective tissue disease. Both cases are illustrated with follow-up computer tomography data. The presented clinical cases demonstrate various manifestations that a radiotherapist may encounter in this patient cohort: nodular masses, cavitation, infiltration, etc. Only a combination of clinical, anamnestic and laboratory data, along with X-ray data, allows to establish the correct diagnosis, commonly with case follow-up of the patient. KEYWORDS: focal pulmonary masses, rheumatoid arthritis, lung damage, rheumatoid nodules, tuberculosis, systemic connective tissue diseases. FOR CITATION: Teplyakova O.V., Shai S.E., Yakovleva Yu.V., Leshchenko I.V., Sarapulova A.V., Kolmakova O.V. Focal pulmonary masses in patients with rheumatological pathologies. Russian Medical Inquiry. 2023;7(7):467–471 (in Russ.). DOI: 10.32364/2587-6821-2023-7-7-10.
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