Pulmonary fibrosis
Scarring throughout the lungs that can be caused by many conditions, such as sarcoidosis, hypersensitivity pneumonitis, asbestosis, and certain medications. Pulmonary fibrosis can also occur without an identifiable cause, in which case it is referred to as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Symptoms include shortness of breath, coughing, and diminished exercise tolerance. Treatment involves use of corticosteroids (such as prednisone) and/or other medications that suppress the body’s immune system. The goal of treatment is to decrease lung inflammation and subsequent scarring. Responses to treatment vary. Toxicity and side effects of treatment can be serious. Therefore, patients with pulmonary fibrosis are generally cared for by lung specialists.
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A test that is designed to measure how well the lungs are working. Abbreviated PFT. PFTs gauge how the lungs are expanding and contracting (when a person inhales and exhales) and measure the efficiency of the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide between the blood and the air within the lungs.
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High blood pressure in the pulmonary arteries. This elevated blood pressure can lead to severe shortness of breath and death. Lung transplantation is considered in severe cases that are unresponsive to treatments.
- Pulmonary insufficiency
A condition in which the valve between the right ventricle of the heart and the pulmonary artery is incompetent in its performance, allowing blood to slosh back from the pulmonary artery into the right ventricle.
- Pulmonary stenosis
A condition in which the pulmonary valve is too tight, so that the flow of blood from the right ventricle of the heart into the pulmonary artery is impeded. This means that the right ventricle must pump harder than normal to overcome the obstruction. Treatment is necessary if the pressure in the right ventricle is […]
- Pulmonary medicine
ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome), asthma, COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), cystic fibrosis, interstitial lung disease, lung cancer, lung transplants, occupational lung disease, pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary tuberculosis, sarcoidosis of the lungs, and SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome). Pulmonary medicine is also sometimes called pulmonology which is the science concerned with the anatomy, physiology, and pathology […]