Interstitial lung diseases: clinical features and management.

Interstitial lung diseases (ILDs) or diffuse parenchymal lung diseases are terms used to describe around 200 acute and chronic lung disorders (Raghu and Brown, 2004). They are a heterogeneous group of disorders of the lower respiratory tract that are characterised by both acute and chronic inflammation and a generally irreversible and relentless process of fibrosis in the interstitium and the alveolar walls (air sacs in the lungs) (Riches et al, 2003).