| Abstract: | Thirty-two patients with different forms of interstitial lung diseases (ILD), such as idiopathic fibrosing alveolitis (IFA) (n = 17) and fibrosing alveolitis concurrent with diffuse connective tissue diseases (FA-DCTD), were examined. Clinical, echocardiographic, computed tomographic, coagulative, and immunological studies were performed. Enzyme immunoassay was used to determine the levels of a complex of thrombin and antithrombin III (TAT) and platelet factor IV (PF-IV). There were significant increases in the levels of PF-IV (4.36 +/- 0.25 mg/l) and TAT (10.87 +/- 3.8 mg/l) in patients with ILD as compared to the control (2.75 +/- 0.47 and 1.8 +/- 0.2 mg/l, respectively; p < 0.05). In patients with early FA-DCTD with the predominance of the milk glass syndrome during high-resolution CT (HRCT), the level of PF-IV was greater than the normal levels (p < 0.05) and decreased with the progression of the disease and with the formation of the honeycomb lung. If there were HRCT signs of active inflammation, the level of TAT was higher than that in the control; this was also in the development of irreversible fibrous changes. |
