The Coagulation Cascade in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis
Status:
Unknown status
Trial end date:
1969-12-31
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
The pathogenesis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is incompletely understood but
recurrent epithelial injury occurs which evokes the coagulation cascade. Thrombin is produced
as a result and is over expressed in IPF patients, so may be important in propagating disease
activity. We aim to recruit patients with IPF and then complete FDG
(18F-2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose fluorodeoxyglucose) PET (positron emission tomography) scans
pre and post manipulation of the coagulation cascade to assess the role of this biological
pathway in disease activity. Previous studies from our institution have demonstrated
increased FDG avidity in the lungs of patients with IPF (assessed using FDG PET scans) but to
date the cells and pathways responsible for this signal have not been identified and thus
need further exploration.