The diseases may run a gradual or rapid course. People with ILD may have varied symptoms -- from very mild to moderate to very severe. The condition may remain the same for long periods of time or it may change quickly. The course of ILDs is unpredictable. If they progress, the lung tissue thickens and becomes stiff. The work of breathing then becomes more difficult and demanding. Some of the diseases improve with medication if treated when inflammation occurs. Some people may need oxygen therapy as part of their treatment.

27 April 2006 - Interstitial Fibrosis In Coalworkers

The Industrial Injuries Advisory Council (IIAC), the independent body which advises the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on the Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (IIDB) scheme, today announced the publication of its Position Paper 'Interstitial Fibrosis in Coalworkers'

The Industrial Injuries Advisory Council was requested, at its Public Meeting in March 2005, to consider whether interstitial fibrosis should be recommended to the Secretary of State as a prescribed disease, in its own right, for the purposes of the Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit scheme.

The Council evaluated the evidence in the scientific literature and found that interstitial fibrosis is common as part of the disease process of coalworkers' pneumoconiosis (Prescribed Disease (PD) D1) and any disability would be assessed under the terms of this disease and of PD D12 coalworkers' chronic bronchitis and emphysema. The Council found no evidence available of an excess risk of interstitial fibrosis on its own.

Description Of Interstitial Pulmonary Fibrosis

Interstitial lung disease refers to a group of diseases that are chronic, nonmalignant, and noninfectious. These diseases are characterized by infiltration of inflammatory cells into the walls of the alveoli (the air sacs of the lungs). The infiltration causes abnormal scarring in the connective tissue that supports the alveoli. If the disease progresses, scarring develops to the point that the lungs may be destroyed.

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is the most common diagnosis among patients presenting with interstitial lung disease. It is a chronic, noninfectious, nonmalignant disorder that causes progressive shortness of breath. Average duration of life after the onset of symptoms is 4 to 5 years, but many affected persons live much longer. Males and females are affected equally. The disorder commonly develops in the middle years of life but it can occur at any age.