Lung disease is commonly encountered in rheumatological practice either as a manifestation of the underlying condition or as a consequence of using disease-modifying therapies. This has been particularly apparent with the TNF-α antagonists and exacerbations of interstitial lung disease (ILD). In view of this, we undertook a review of the current literature to identify non-infectious pulmonary complications associated with the newer biologic agents used for the treatment of rheumatic conditions.
A systematic literature review (SLR) was conducted using PubMed, the Cochrane Library and EMBASE for reviews, meta-analyses, clinical studies and randomized controlled trials, case studies and series, published up to June 2010 using the terms rituximab (RTX), certolizumab, golimumab (GOL), tocilizumab (TCZ) and abatacept in the advanced search option without limitations. In addition, abstracts from International Rheumatology conferences and unpublished data from the Food and Drug Administration, the European Medicines Agency and drug manufacturers were used to complement our search. References were reviewed manually and only those articles that suggested a potential relationship between the biological agent and lung toxicity, following exclusion of other causes, were included.
Reported non-infectious pulmonary adverse events with TCZ included a fatal exacerbation of RA-associated ILD, new-onset ILD, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and allergic pneumonitis, as well as three cases of microbiological culture-negative pneumonia. Although RTX had a higher incidence of pulmonary toxicity, only 7 of the 121 cases reported involved rheumatological diseases. GOL treatment was associated with four cases of non-infectious pulmonary toxicity and two cases of pneumonia with negative microbiological studies. There were no episodes of pulmonary toxicity identified for either certolizumab or abatacept.
Our results highlight an association between the use of newer biologic agents (TCZ, RTX and GOL) and the development of non-infectious parenchymal lung disease in patients with RA. Post-marketing surveillance and biologic registries will be critical for detecting further cases of ILD and improving our understanding of the pathophysiology of this process. As the use of these drugs increases, clinicians must remain vigilant for potential pulmonary complications and exercise caution in prescribing biologic therapies, particularly to rheumatological patients with pre-existing ILD.