STUDY ON CLINICO-RADIOLOGICAL FEATURES INDICATIVE OF INTERSTITIAL LUNG DISEASE WITH THE HELP OF SPIROMETRY, CHEST X-RAY AND HIGH RESOLUTION COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY CHEST

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Background: Interstitial lung disease (ILD), is a group of respiratory diseases affecting the interstitium of the lungs and is very common in our country. They exhibit wide variety of symptoms hence their diagnosis is challenging. We aim at studying the clinco-radiological features of ILD using chest x-ray, spirometry and HRCT without surgical and transbronchial lung biopsy. Material and Methods: Patients with clinicradiological features suggestive of ILD that attended the OPD or were admitted to the wards of a tertiary care hospital between 2015 to 2016 were included in the study. The clinical details, demographics, chest x-ray, spirometry and HRCT ndings, were recorded and analysed. Fifty Results: one patients, who were clinic-radiologically suggestive of ILD were included in the study. IPF constitutes the single largest disease accounting for 41.2% among all other ILD followed by connective tissue disorder associated ILD (31.4%). Reticulonodular shadows were the most common chest x-ray ndings present in 36 (70.6%) patients of ILD. Restrictive pattern was found to be present in spirometry in 42 (82.3%) patients of ILD. Honeycombing and reticular opacities (60.8%) were the most common HRCT chest ndings in patients of ILD followed by brosis (35.3%), diffuse ground glass opacities (33.3%), traction bronchiectasis (27.5%) and nodular opacities (5.9%). Surgical and transbronchial Conclusion: lung biopsy are widely used for the diagnosis of ILD but they possess several complications and risk factors like pneumothorax, bleeding in the airways, arrhythmias or untoward events during anaesthesia. Diligent examination of the clinic-radiological features using chest x-ray, spirometry and HRCT can successfully predict ILD thereby avoiding currently used invasive techniques