DESQUAMATIVE INTERSTITIAL PNEUMONIA - A R ARE FORM OF DIFFUSE INTERSTITIAL PNEUMONIA

Desquamative interstitial pneumonia (PID) is a rare disorder initially described by Liebow in 1965. It is characterised by the presence of a n interstitial pneumonia consisting of minimal lesions of interstitial fibrosis and by the accumulation of a rich intra-alveolar cellular ma terial principally composed of macrophages. Numerous aetiologies have been Sound particularly that due to long term Nitrofurantoin. We repor t the observation of a 57 year old patient, a cigarette smoker, in who m the diagnosis of PID was made after histological examination of a lu ng biopsy. Based on this observation the pathogenesis and possible and possible different aetiologies of PID are discussed.