Acute pulmonary fibrosis may respond to autoimmune disease therapy

Patients with acute exacerbations of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis responded well to therapies similar to those used to treat autoimmune diseases, suggesting that autoantibodies may play an important role in patients with acute exacerbations of IPF, a devastating lung disease, scientists report. Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is a disease of unknown origin with no approved treatments. It results in scar tissue building up in the lungs. It affects more than 100,000 people in the United States and 5 million worldwide. The median survival rate is less than three years, and only 20 percent of patients survive five years beyond diagnosis.

from Today's Healthcare News -- ScienceDaily http://ift.tt/1K0aK8I