Patients with interstitial lung disease—a group of disorders causing progressive scarring of lung tissue—are often prescribed various medications that specifically target their disease and others that treat their symptoms. A new Respirology study found that patients often experience significant burden associated with the treatment and management of their illness, and some are at risk of experiencing drug-disease interactions, or adverse outcomes that arise after receiving a drug that exacerbates their disease.
Among the 214 patients in the study, more than two-thirds were taking five or more medications. The potential for experiencing drug-disease interactions was especially high for patients who were prescribed systemic corticosteroids.
"It's exciting that we now have treatments with better evidence for managing patients with interstitial lung disease; however, a holistic approach with careful evaluation prior to treatment initiation is important to minimize treatment complexity and complications," said lead author Dr. Yet Khor, of Austin Health, in Australia.
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