Hi John, thanks for writing to us and really good question! Unfortunately, acute exacerbations (AE’s) in IPF patients are really complicated and can be caused by a number of different factors from my understanding (non-medical one, as I’m not a physician). It even sounds as though the cause for AEs may be due to some things that effect one patient, but may not effect another. The two AEs I’ve had have been caused by respiratory illnesses – RSV and pneumonia, but I know others who get through those viruses just fine. Is there something in particular you were wondering about that may cause an AE? Here is an article explaining AEs in IPF a bit further: https://pulmonaryfibrosisnews.com/2015/01/22/acute-exacerbation-of-idiopathic-pulmonary-fibrosis-caused-by-macrophage-activation/ … let me know if this helps.
Charlene.
@kanej
Hi John, thanks for writing to us and really good question! Unfortunately, acute exacerbations (AE’s) in IPF patients are really complicated and can be caused by a number of different factors from my understanding (non-medical one, as I’m not a physician). It even sounds as though the cause for AEs may be due to some things that effect one patient, but may not effect another. The two AEs I’ve had have been caused by respiratory illnesses – RSV and pneumonia, but I know others who get through those viruses just fine. Is there something in particular you were wondering about that may cause an AE? Here is an article explaining AEs in IPF a bit further: https://pulmonaryfibrosisnews.com/2015/01/22/acute-exacerbation-of-idiopathic-pulmonary-fibrosis-caused-by-macrophage-activation/ … let me know if this helps.
Charlene.