Rheumatoid Arthritis Support Group

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, inflammatory, multisystem, autoimmune disorder. It is a disabling and painful condition which can lead to substantial loss of mobility due to pain and joint destruction. The disease is also systemic in that it often also affects many extra-articular tissues throughout the body including the skin, blood vessels, heart, lungs, and...

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Lung inflammation

iambayview
iambayview

Hi There,


Does anybody know if repeated lung inflammation inevitably leads to lung disease in RA? Also, if so, has anybody been given an estimated time frame from onset of symptoms to onset of lung disease? Thank you in advance for any and all info.

Kimhurts
Kimhurts
Are you on MTX and have you seen a pulmonologist?
WarriorGal
WarriorGal
I'm sorry you are experiencing this. I had a pleural effusion and partially collapsed lung, but not an infection. The drained fluid was biopsied and was rheumatoid.

I imagine you will be on broad-based antibiotics, possibly IV. Be sure to take probiotics to keep your gut safe!
californialynn
californialynn
I've had a number of lung conditions over the 26 years I've had RA. None of the lung conditions was or is associated with RA.

My point: just because you have RA don't assume lung condition is associated with the disease.

Get a good pulmonologist.
MarleneJ
MarleneJ
What Lynn said! I have had repeated lung issues, especially pneumonias and bronchitis in the past. I also developed severe asthma, which is now milder after allergy shots. I remember having a super bad asthma attack in 2004. I went to the ER, and the doctor showed me my X-rays, and my lungs were so inflamed, you could barely see any definition. A week on 50 mg of prednisone, and somehow not being exposed to the same allergin did the trick!

So, 20 years of RA, and maybe some tiny nodules, that the lung specialist is going to keep track of yearly? That might be mthx lung or Rheumatoid Lung Disease, or recovery from the forest fire smoke! Point being, any lung inflammation I have had has not been from RA.

On the other hand, I have a friend for church and she has Rheumatoid Lung disease, and it is so bad now, she had to also go off mthx. She is 70, age wise, and has had RA a long time. She also has vasculitis, which I don't have, a different family of RA, obviously>

Do see a lung specialist, and see what he says, instead of worrying about getting it in the future.

PS I have a cousin who has had RA for 65 years and has no lung involvement. We are all different!