Pulmonary Fibrosis Associated with Polymyalgia Rheumatica

• Published in: Internal Medicine Vol. 36; no. 11; pp. 837 - 840
• Main Authors: SHIMADA, Tatsuya, MATSUMURA, Katsumi, HIGASHI, Kiichiro, HIGASHI, Kenji, KIMURA, Keishi, TOMITA, Kimio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Tokyo The Japanese Society of Internal Medicine 1997; Japanese Society of Internal Medicine
• Subjects: Aged; Biological and medical sciences; Biopsy; Bronchoscopy; Diseases of the osteoarticular system; Female; Follow-Up Studies; giant cell arteritis (GCA); Glucocorticoids - therapeutic use; Humans; idiopathic interstitial pneumonia (IIP); Inflammatory joint diseases; interstitial lung disease (ILD); interstitial pneumonia; Medical sciences; Polymyalgia Rheumatica - complications; Polymyalgia Rheumatica - diagnosis; Polymyalgia Rheumatica - drug therapy; Prednisolone - therapeutic use; Pulmonary Fibrosis - complications; Pulmonary Fibrosis - diagnosis; Pulmonary Fibrosis - drug therapy; Radiography, Thoracic; Time Factors; Tomography, X-Ray Computed; usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP); Case study; Human; Lung disease; Concomitant disease; Chronic; Respiratory disease; Lung; Polymyalgia rheumatica; Diseases of the osteoarticular system; Fibrosis; Female; Inflammatory joint disease
• ISSN: 0918-2918; 1349-7235
• DOI: 10.2169/internalmedicine.36.837

Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) and exacerbated pulmonary fibrosis presented concurrently in a 69-year-old woman with a 5-year history of idiopathic interstitial pneumonia. The radiographic and histological examinations suggested usual interstitial pneumonia (DIP) as a more likely diagnosis. Corticosteroid therapy resulted in relief of the patient's muscle symptoms and improvement in the functional and radiographical signs of the pulmonary fibrosis. The final diagnosis was pulmonary fibrosis associated with PMR, because PMR is believed to be one of the causes contributing to interstitial lung diseases. (Internal Medicine 36: 837-840, 1997)