Tests for specific diseases – Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD)

There are many causes of interstitial lung disease

• Some auto-immune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, sarcoidosis, scleroderma, systemic lupus erythematosis or vasculitis can cause ILD and blood tests can be sent to screen for these diseases.
• Lungs may develop an immune response, called hypersensitivity pneumonitis, to specific inhaled particles which causes lung inflammation.
  • Commonly known conditions are farmers lung and bird fanciers lung. Blood tests can detect antibodies from these sources.
  • The condition can be reversible if the source of the inhaled particles can be avoided.

As the ILD gets worse some patients need an Arterial Blood Gas test to detect hypoxia which may need treated with long term oxygen therapy.