Abstract
Background: IPF is a fatal lung disease, with no current effective treatment. IPF is considered idiopathic by definition, but key environmental exposures may be important to its pathogenesis. Methods:The Australian IPF Registry is a national cohort of IPF patients. Data collected include a questionnaire with detailed exposure history to tobacco, environment, and dust exposures. The prevalence of exposures and associations between rate of exposure and IPF were explored. Results: 377 patients have consented to the Registry. 299 (79%) have completed exposure questionnaires (mean±SD: age 70.9±8.0yrs; 202 male; FVC 82.5±22.8%predicted). Smoking history: 204 ex-smokers, 9 current smokers, 85 non-smokers. Environmental exposures are reported in Table 1. Occupational exposures include asbestos 115 (40.8%; 95%CI: 35.2, 46.6),silica 37 (13.0%; 9.5, 17.4), chemicals 136 (47.1%; 41.4, 52.8) and dusty environments 153 (52.0%; 46.3, 57.7). The IPF rate in geographic areas correlated with exposure rate to chemicals (r=0.86, p=0.01) and dusty environments (r=1.0; p<0.001). Conclusion: IPF patients report a high prevalence of potentially adverse exposures, and exploratory analyses show a geographic relationship between some exposures and IPF. Further case control studies are needed to determine if these exposures are more prevalent in IPF patients than healthy controls.
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