Respiratory medicine
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Respiratory medicine · Mar 2012
ReviewAcute exacerbation of IPF following diagnostic bronchoalveolar lavage procedures.
Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) is generally regarded as a safe diagnostic procedure. However, acute exacerbation after BAL is increasingly recognized as a specific complication for patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). So far little is known about the correlation between BAL and acute exacerbation of IPF (AE-IPF). ⋯ These results suggest that IPF patients should be carefully monitored after BAL, especially those with functional impairment or active inflammation.