Rare Lung Diseases: Interstitial Lung Diseases and Lung Manifestations of Rheumatological Diseases

The concept of Childhood Interstitial Lung Disease (ChILD) is relatively young. There has been tremendous progress in this field in the last decade. The key advance has been the recognition of interstitial lung diseases that are often distinct and occur mainly in infants. Diagnosis is challenging because the incidence is low and no single center in the world has enough cases to promote experience and clinical skills. This has led to formation of international groups of people interested in the field and the “Children’s interstitial and diffuse lung disease research network” (ChILDRN) is one such group which contributed to the progress of this field. Clinically, these disorders overlap with those of other common respiratory disorders. Hence, clinical practice guidelines emphasize the additional role of chest imaging, genetic testing and lung biopsy in the diagnostic evaluation. Genetic testing, in particular, has shown tremendous progress in this field. Being noninvasive, it has the potential to help early recognition in a vast majority. Despite progress, definitive therapeutic modalities are still lacking and supportive care is still the backbone of management in the majority. Early recognition of the definitive diagnosis helps in the management, even if, in a significant number, it helps in avoiding unnecessary therapy. Also discussed in this article, is the pulmonary manifestation of rheumatic diseases in children. The incidence and spectrum of pulmonary involvement in rheumatic conditions vary and can be result of the primary disease or its management or due to an concurrent infection.