SHRINKING LUNG SYNDROME

Course overview

SHRINKING LUNG SYNDROME (SLS) IS A COMPLICATION OF SYSTEMIC AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE, MOST COMMONLY SEEN IN SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS BUT ALSO REPORTED IN SJOGREN SYNDROME, RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS, AND SCLERODERMA. IT IS CHARACTERIZED BY DYSPNOEA WITH OR WITHOUT PLEURITIC CHEST PAIN, THE ELEVATION OF THE HEMIDIAPHRAGM, AND RESTRICTIVE PHYSIOLOGY ON LUNG FUNCTION TESTING, THIS RARE CONDITION CAN HAVE SERIOUS COMPLICATIONS INCLUDING MARKED DYSPNOEA AND MORE RARELY, RESPIRATORY FAILURE. TO AVOID THE SIGNIFICANT MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY ASSOCIATED WITH THIS CONDITION, IT MUST BE PROMPTLY DIAGNOSED AND TREATED. THIS ACTIVITY REVIEWS THE EVALUATION AND TREATMENT OF SHRINKING LUNG SYNDROME AND HIGHLIGHTS THE ROLE OF THE INTERPROFESSIONAL TEAM IN EVALUATING AND TREATING PATIENTS WITH THIS CONDITION.