Pulmonary fibrosis is a term which refers to the lung scarring,which is usually the consequence of conditions related to the chronicinflammatory processes, infections, exposure to ionizing radiation during the radiation therapy, chronic conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus,are certain medicines. It is also possible that this pulmonary fibrosis occurswithout a known reason, and such cases are referred to as idiopathic pulmonaryfibrosis. They cannot be treated in the same way as other cases of pulmonaryfibrosis where causes are identified. More precisely, options for thetreatment are limited here, because the known medication is helpful. However,whichever is the cause of this condition might be, one thing is sure – when once thescarring develops, it remains there permanently. The treatment of the conditionlasts for months, and as for medicines, only few are proved to be helpful in somecases, either in a way they slow down the process of the development of the disease,or improves the function of the lungs thus preventing their destruction. Suchmedicines are pirfenidone and the combination of Prednisone andN-acetylcysteine. On the other hand, these medicines may have serious sideeffects, and even cause toxicity.
The transplantation of the lung is practically considered to bethe ultimate option, and it is usually done in the cases of young people where noother method of the treatment has given any positive results. Here its importantto mention that it is not at all easy to find donors of this organ, which iswhy the candidates for the surgery are even more carefully selected. Oxygen therapy may alsobe a part of the treatment of pulmonary fibrosis, since the level of oxygen inblood is usually lowered, and this way the patient will breather easier, andthe pressure of the blood in the right side of the heart will be significantlyreduced. Pulmonary rehabilitation has the purpose to improve the quality oflife of the people suffering from this illness in general, and it is focused onexercising, education and emotional support. All this implies that, when itcomes to the treatment of this condition, a team of specialists should beincluded. However, even though the cure for this illness has not beenfound yet, there are many ongoing researches, as well as clinical trials, andif the patients are interested in participating, they should address this to theirdoctor, who will be able to provide them with all the necessary informationabout these programs.
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