Listening for fine crackles — a sound like Velcro strips being separated — during routine lung checks with a stethoscope may help healthcare providers to reach an early diagnosis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a Canadian study reports. Doctors are almost 13 times more likely to hear such fine…
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Stem cells found in human umbilical cords limited lung damage associated with pulmonary fibrosis (PF) by reducing an excessive inflammatory immune response, a recent study of mice has found. Understanding how these stem cells interact with the immune system could improve future PF cell therapies, the researchers noted. The…
The National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) is applauding the Biden administration for announcing a rule to protect consumers from surprise medical billing, in a joint statement with 26 other U.S. patient organizations. The interim final rule will implement patient protections required by the No Surprises Act. Surprise…
Switching antifibrotic treatment is generally well-tolerated among people with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), and those who did generally lived several years longer than those who did not, a study from Japan reports. Findings suggest that switching from one antifibrotic to another “is feasible and may improve prognosis [disease course]…
More than 100,000 fewer hospital appointments were logged by people with lung diseases like idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) in England between March 2020 and 2021, relative to the average annual number of such appointments — which the Taskforce for Lung Health attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic and the strain…
AllianceRx Walgreens Prime, a specialty and home delivery pharmacy, is partnering with TailorMed, a healthcare technology company, to help lower out-of-pocket prescription costs for specialty pharmacy patients. Medications attained through specialty pharmacies are those used to treat rare and chronic conditions in the U.S., and are often extremely costly. For…
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) co-occurring with a second lung disorder represents a distinct new IPF subtype with a poor prognosis and its own set of treatment considerations, a recent study found. The discovery of this new IPF subtype, made with the help of a computerized image analysis tool, could…
A subset of fibroblasts that produce a protein called meflin in lung tissues taken from people with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) was found to prevent fibrosis, or tissue scarring, in a disease mouse model, scientists reported. “Our research, led by a collaborative team from Nagoya University in Japan and…
Changes in gene activity and immune cell populations in the lungs of people with chronic lung diseases, such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), may predispose these patients to severe COVID-19, a study indicated. “Our results suggest that patients with chronic lung disease are molecularly primed to be more susceptible…
A new, automated computer image analysis technique was able to accurately assess and measure the severity of pulmonary fibrosis (PF) using patients’ lung tissue samples, a study reported. According to its researchers, this technique may complement conventional measures of disease severity, and could prove useful in assessing a range…
