Interstitial Pulmonary Fibrosis and Receiving Social Security Disability
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The word pulmonary is used to refer to things that involve your lungs. The word fibrosis means scarring.
Pulmonary fibrosis is a disease that develops when the tissue of your lungs is scarred and damaged. Pulmonary fibrosis causes your lung tissue to become thickened and stiff. As a result, your lungs have a harder time working like they should. As time goes by, you become more and more short of breath.
There are several forms of pulmonary fibrosis. Interstitial pulmonary fibrosis is a type of this illness in which the meshwork of your lung tissue (alveolar septa) are involved rather than your air spaces (alveoli).
The damage that interstitial pulmonary fibrosis does to your lungs is irreversible. There are some cases, however, where medications and therapies may give you some relief from your signs and symptoms and improve the quality of your life. A lung transplant may be an option to consider in some instances.
There are several things that can cause the damage to your lungs that results in interstitial pulmonary fibrosis. Airborne toxins in your workplace, certain kinds of medical treatments and certain lung diseases are some of the possible causes of this ailment.
Long-term exposure to several toxins and pollutants can result in interstitial pulmonary fibrosis. Some of these include:
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- Grain dust
- Asbestos fibers
- Silica dust
- Animal and bird droppings.
- Working in construction, mining or farming where you are exposed to pollutants
- Using certain chemotherapy medications or having cancer radiation treatments to your chest
- Being middle-aged or older
- Genetic factors because some forms of pulmonary fibrosis seem to run in families
- Being a smoker.
- Unexplained weight loss
- Aching muscles and joints
- A dry cough
- Fatigue
- Shortness of breath (dyspnea)
- Malaise (general sick feeling).
