Interstitial Lung Disease

Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a term for a group of over 200 conditions that cause inflammation and scarring in your lungs. ILD damages the tissues between the small air sacs in your lungs (alveoli) and the blood vessels around them. This makes it harder for you to move oxygen out of your lungs and into your body.

Interstitial lung disease is also called diffuse parenchymal lung disease (DPLD).

What happens when you have interstitial lung disease?

When you have interstitial lung disease, parts of your lungs that help oxygen get into your blood and out to your tissues are damaged. Scarring in your lungs makes it hard to breathe, and you might have a chronic cough. Lack of oxygen can make you feel tired all the time.

When damage continues to get worse, you can have life-threatening complications, like lung infections and respiratory failure (not enough oxygen or too much carbon dioxide in your body).

What are examples of interstitial lung disease?

There are over 200 interstitial lung diseases. The most common is idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, followed by diseases caused by occupational exposures or connective tissue disorders. A few other examples include:

• Asbestosis.
• Silicosis.
• Radiation pneumonitis.
• Nonspecific interstitial pneumonia.

What’s the difference between interstitial lung disease and pulmonary fibrosis?

Pulmonary fibrosis is a type of interstitial lung disease. Not all ILD is pulmonary fibrosis.

Who is most at risk for interstitial lung disease?

You’re more likely to develop interstitial lung disease if you:

• Are over 70.
• Were assigned male at birth.
• Smoke or used to smoke.
• Have a history of certain illnesses or conditions, like hepatitis C, tuberculosis, pneumonia, COPD or connective tissue disease.
• Work around substances that can irritate your lungs, like asbestos, silica, molds, fungi or bacteria.
• Have had chest radiation.

How serious is interstitial lung disease?

Since there are many kinds of interstitial lung diseases, any one case could be mild or very serious. Most kinds of ILD cause irreversible lung damage. The most serious ILDs are progressive, where your condition continues to worsen over time.