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Index of Diseases and Conditions: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Lung Diseases

When you breathe, your lungs take in oxygen from the air and deliver it to the bloodstream. The cells in your body need oxygen to work and grow. During a normal day, you breathe nearly 25,000 times. People with lung disease have difficulty breathing. Millions of people in the U.S. have lung disease. If all types of lung disease are lumped together, it is the number three killer in the United States.

The term lung disease refers to many disorders affecting the lungs, such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, infections like influenza, pneumonia and tuberculosis, lung cancer, and many other breathing problems.

National Women's Health Information Center

Diffuse Parenchymal Lung Disease on Wikipedia

'''Diffuse parenchymal lung disease''' ('''DPLD'''), also known as '''interstitial lung disease''', refers to a group of lung diseases, affecting the alveolus epithelium, pulmonary capillary endothelium, basement membrane, perivascular and perilymphatic tissues. The term DPLD is used to distinguish these diseases from obstructive airways diseases. Most types of DPLD involve fibrosis, but this is not essential; indeed fibrosis is often a later feature. Hence the term ''pulmonary fibrosis'' has fallen out of favor.

Causes

DPLD may be classified according to the cause: - 1. Inhaled substances * Inorganic ** Silica ** Asbestos ** Beryllium * Organic ** Hypersensitivity pneumonitis 2. Drug induced * Antibiotics * Chemotherapy * Antiarrhythmic drugs 3. Connective tissue disease * Systemic sclerosis * Dermatomyositis * Systemic lupus erythematosus * Rheumatoid arthritis 4. Infection * Atypical pneumonia * Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia * Tuberculosis 5. Idiopathic * Sarcoidosis * Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis 6. Malignancy * Lymphangitic carcinomatosis

Investigation

Investigation is tailored towards the symptoms and signs. Most patients have blood testing, chest x-ray, pulmonary function testing, and high resolution computerized tomography thorax.

Treatment

DPLD is not a single disease, but encompasses many different pathological processes. Hence treatment is different for each disease. If a specific occupational exposure cause is found, the person should avoid that environment. If a drug cause is suspected, that drug should be discontinued. Many idiopathic and connective tissue-based causes of DPLD are treated with prednisolone. Some patients respond to immunosuppressant treatment. Patients with hypoxemia may be given supplemental oxygen.

External Links

* [http://www.pulmonaryfibrosis.org/ipf.htm ...   [ Read More ]


External Resources

NHLBI Proteomics Initiative - Collaboration of ten multi-disciplinary research centers, to develop technologies, and apply them to advancing knowledge of heart, lung, blood, and sleep health and disease. Includes links to participants throughout the USA.

Johns Hopkins NHLBI Proteomics Center - The center's mission is to apply state-of-the-art methods and to develop new approaches and techniques to investigate the proteomics of adaptation to ischemia and hypoxia, a biological process of general relevance to heart, lung and blood diseases.

Oxford University GeneMedicine Research Group - Focused on the development gene therapies for diseases of the airway, such as asthma, lung cancer and in particular, cystic fibrosis (CF). Work includes formulation development, reagent production, pre-clinical testing, and human clinical trials.

Medical Graphics Corporation - Develops, manufactures, and markets cardiorespiratory diagnostic equipment for the early diagnosis and prevention of heart and lung diseases.

Louisiana Cancer and Lung Trust Fund Board - Cancer control and cardio-pulmonary diseases with statistics, screening and public health in Louisiana.

Altruis Biomedical Network: Lung Cancer - Provides information about the causes, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of this disease.

What You Need to Know about Lung Cancer - General information on many aspects of the disease from the U.S. National Cancer Institute.

Rhode Island Cancer Council: Lung Cancer - Fact sheet describing the disease, including information on detection.

Mayo Clinic: Lung Cancer - Includes a description of this disease, its symptoms, causes, risk factors, diagnosis, treatment and coping strategies.

Medicine World: Lung Cancer - Presents information on the disease including links, news, types, symptoms and prognosis.


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Lung Cancer
Lung Transplantation
Autoimmune Diseases
Bladder Diseases
Bone Diseases
Brain Diseases
Breast Diseases
Colonic Diseases
Digestive Diseases
Endocrine Diseases

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