Nihon Ronen Igakkai zasshi. Japanese journal of geriatrics
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Nihon Ronen Igakkai Zasshi · Jan 2005
Review[Expectation of new treatments for idiopathic interstitial pneumonias].
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a chronic form of idiopathic interstitial pneumonia, has a poor prognosis with an average life expectancy of 3-4 years from the time of diagnosis. Although patients with IPF have been treated with steroids or immunosuppressants to control the inflammation that occurs earlier in the course of disease, these drugs have not improved the survival of patients with IPF. Recently, several clinical studies of antifibrotic drugs have been conducted in patients with IPF. ⋯ In a study of patients with pulmonary fibrosis associated with Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome in the United States, pirfenidone slowed the decrease in %FVC in patients with a %FVC of >60%, but had no significant effects on patients with a %FVC of < or =60%. Large-scale clinical studies of INF-gamma in patients with IPF in North America and Europe have reported decreases in the mortality of patients with mild IPF with a FVC of >60%, although percentages of patients with disease status rated as 'exacerbated', 'unchanged' and 'improved' after treatment did not differ between the INF-gamma and placebo groups. This presentation reported important future strategies for the treatment of IPF.