WHAT IS PULMONARY FIBROSIS?
Pulmonary fibrosis can be defined as a condition that causes scarring and stiffness of lung tissues making it difficult to breathe. It prevents your body cells from getting enough oxygen and leading to complications like respiratory failure, heart failure. In pulmonary fibrosis the walls of alveoli (air sacs of the lungs) starts to scar and thicken.
ARE PULMONARY FIBROSIS AND COPD SAME:
NO, pulmonary fibrosis and copd are not same they are different disease they are similar in some ways; both are lung disease and both have breathing problems.
- COPD: It is a lung disease in which lung tissues are damaged, alveoli are destroyed and airways get irritated and inflamed.
- PULMONARY FIBROSIS: It is a lung disease in which interstitial tissues (makes the space between blood vessels and other structures inside the lungs) are damaged.
WHAT ARE CAUSES OF PULMONARY FIBROSIS?
Pulmonary fibrosis can be caused by many factors such as:
- Smoking
- Autoimmune disease
- Infections
- Environmental exposure
- Genetics
- Medications
- Idiopathic
WHO ARE MORE PRONE TO GET PULMONARY FIBROSIS?
You’ll get pulmonary fibrosis if you are:
- Male
- Smokes tobacco
- Of old age
- Working around dust and fumes
- Under radiation exposure
- Have a family history of this condition
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF PULMONARY FIBROSIS?
Symptoms of pulmonary fibrosis may include:
- Shortness of breath
- Dry hawking cough
- Extreme weakness
- Weight loss
- Aching muscles and joints
- Clubbing (widening of finger nails)
- Cyanosis (bluish discoloration ) of skin
HOW CAN WE DIAGNOSE PULMONARY FIBROSIS?
Diagnosis of pulmonary fibrosis is multifactorial. It can be done by:
- Case taking
- Detailed personal and family history
- Question about work, environment and living condition.
- Diagnostic test regarding pulmonary function test.
WHAT ARE THE DIAGNOSTIC TEST DONE FOR PULMONARY FIBROSIS?
There are many test which can help us diagnose pulmonary fibrosis some of them are:
- BLOOD TEST: Done to rule out other disease with same symptoms.
- IMAGING TEST: Chest X-RAY and CT scan are done to rule out other DISEASE
- having same symptoms. CT and XRAY show fibrosis of the cells.
- PULMONARY FUNCTION TEST: Done to measure the lung function and lung capacity.
- OXYGEN DESATURATION STUDY: Done to measure the level of oxygen in blood.
- BIOPSY: Done to confirm the fibrosis.
WHAT ARE THE COMPLICATIONS CAUSED BY PULMONARY FIBROSIS?
Some of the complications caused by pulmonary fibrosis are:
- Pulmonary hypertension
- Heart failure
HOW CAN I PREVENT PULMONARY FIBROSIS?
- Quit smoking
- Take nutritious diet
- Exercise daily
- Take proper rest e.g. 6-8 hrs sleep daily.
HOW CAN I TREAT PULMONARY FIBROSIS WITH HOMEOPATHIC MEDICINE
There is great scope in homeopathy in treating pulmonary fibrosis. Homeopathy treats disease safely and effectively. It treats the patient in disease not only the disease present in the patient. Homeopathic treatment should always be taken under the supervision of expert homeopaths. Some of the medicines which can be prescribed are:
- Silicea: Scarring and fibrosis of lungs with sharp pain in lungs and cough with thick phlegm.
- Arsenic Album: Burning in chest. Suffocative catarrh, cough worse at midnight. Expectoration is scanty and frothy.
- Bryonia: Soreness in the larynx and trachea. Dry hawking cough, cough dry at night, must sit up, worse after drinking or eating.
- Drosera: Spasmodic dry cough, cough very deep and hoarse, worse after midnight, breathing difficulty while talking.
- Antim Tart: Great rattling of mucus but very little expectorated. Burning sensation in the chest.
