chronic lung disease, idiopathic interstitial pneumonitis?

Question

Scaring of the lungs, causing coughing

Answer 1

What's your question? I found this on the web for you:
Chronic Cough in Adults With Interstitial Lung Disease
Diagnosis:
Determining the cause of chronic cough starts with a careful history and physical examination and evaluation of the chest radiograph. If the patient does not smoke and is not taking an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor, then a normal or near-normal chest radiograph suggests one or more of the following diagnoses more than 90% of the time: upper airway cough syndrome (UACS, previously referred to as postnasal drip syndrome), asthma, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), or nonasthmatic eosinophilic bronchitis. If subsequent evaluation suggests that one or more of these common disorders do not account for the patient's cough, additional diagnostic studies are warranted. In this regard, it is notable that a chest radiograph may sometimes fail to detect early or mild ILD, particularly hypersensitivity pneumonitis. Although it is not 100% sensitive for ILD, high-resolution computerized tomography (HRCT) scanning may be needed to detect early or mild ILD in the lung parenchyma.

In the evaluation of chronic cough, whenever the chest radiograph is abnormal and shows changes more substantial than inconsequential findings, the findings should be pursued. For example, if the chest radiograph is suggestive of chronic ILD, then that finding should be fully evaluated. Usually a specific diagnostic cause of ILD can be established by combining a careful history of organic and inorganic dust exposure, risk factors for aspiration, medication history, physical examination, chest radiograph, HRCT, and, when indicated, bronchoscopic or surgical lung biopsy. In most cases, chronic cough will improve with specific therapy directed at the underlying specific diagnosis.

It is not uncommon, however, for a clinician to mistakenly ascribe chronic cough to a well-established diagnosis of ILD when in fact the cause of the cough is due, solely or in part, to another diagnosis. That is, it is essential to remember that UACS due to a variety of rhinosinus diseases, asthma, and GERD, singly or in combination, are all very common disorders that may confound the clinical picture of ILD...

Treatment:
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Answer 2

the word "idiopathic" literally means the doctors have no idea what is causing her lung disease. In that case, use of steroids is sort of a knee jerk reaction, because they will reduce the inflammatory process. I would urge you to get a second and even third opinion to see if some other doctor can actually name her problem accurately and not just call it "idiopathic".

Answer 3

i have a lung disease called interstitial pulmonary fibrosi s
and from what i have read on the internet and from what my pulmonary specialist has told me is that the idiopatchic part of your diagnosis mean that most people with that diagnosis usually only have 3 to 5 years to live but please check this out on the net yourself because obviously i could be mistaken. i am just going on what my doc told me.
hope this has been helpful and may God bless and keep you safe