Anatom3D
ENCZDE
Download

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

Fibrosis pulmonum idiopathica · Idiopatická plicní fibróza

What it is

Lung tissue scars progressively; stiff lungs cannot expand.

Symptoms & signs

  • Dry cough
  • breathlessness on exertion
  • finger clubbing
  • velcro crackles
  • weight loss

🚩 Get help if…

  • call 112 / 911 now Breathlessness getting sharply worse over days
  • call 112 / 911 now Blue lips, or breathless at rest
  • see a doctor soon Fever with cough and more breathlessness
  • see a doctor soon Swollen ankles, or needing more oxygen

Where it strikes

Medical treatment

  • Pirfenidone or nintedanib slow decline
  • oxygen
  • pulmonary rehabilitation
  • lung transplant

Natural & lifestyle

  • Reflux control
  • vaccination
  • exercise training
  • avoid dust and bird exposures

Emerging & experimental

  • Anti-fibrotic combinations
  • LPA1 antagonists
  • senolytics
  • stem-cell and lung bioengineering

Alternative, off-label & anecdotal

Approaches used outside the guidelines, with what their supporters report and what testing has found so far.

  • N-acetylcysteine alone — the PANTHER trial found no benefit; a genetic subgroup is being tested again not confirmed in trials
  • Senolytics (dasatinib + quercetin) — a small pilot study improved walking distance early / small studies
  • Serrapeptase and curcumin — sold as 'dissolving scar tissue'; no human evidence anecdotal / traditional
  • Singing and breathing-muscle training — small trials show less breathlessness early / small studies

ICD codes