[Diagnosis of ILD]

Abstract

The diagnosis of ILD is complex and needs a close collaboration between the pulmologist, the radiologist and the pathologist. However, and most importantly, the general practitioner needs to think about the possibility of ILD if a patient presents with increasing shortness of breath, dry cough and bilateral, basal crackles on lung auscultation. Further work-up by the pulmonologist may confirm and classify the ILD by a detailled patient history, lung function tests, CT scans and bronchoscopy, or even surgical lung biospies, if needed. A multidisciplinary discussion (MDD) is becoming the gold standard in diagnosing ILD and deciding about appropriate treatment, in particular regarding the novel antifibrotic therapies for IPF.