Therapeutic intervention: assessing the role of the international consensus guidelines.

Abstract

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive, fatal lung disorder of unknown etiology. The consensus statement released by the American Thoracic Society and European Respiratory Society has provided guidelines for the diagnosis, evaluation, and management of patients with IPF. These guidelines suggest the use of conventional treatment options including therapy with corticosteroids and immunosuppressive agents. The guidelines statement acknowledged the fact that there is little good-quality evidence to support the safety and efficacy of such therapies in patients with IPF. The statement was published in 2000 and was based on an extensive review of the literature up to and including December 1998. The goal of this review is to reexamine the treatment recommendations of the guidelines statement in the context of data that has since become available.