Nonpharmacologic Therapy for Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

The care of patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis requires multidisciplinary management integrating disease-specific therapy with treatment of comorbidities as well as symptom palliation. This review focuses on the role of nonpharmacologic therapy in the care of patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and describes the integration of this aspect of care in the overall patient-centered model. Nonpharmacologic care in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is focused primarily on symptom management and falls in the realm of palliative care. This includes interventions to abate disease-specific symptoms such as cough and dyspnea, as well as more general comorbidities such as gastroesophageal reflux disease, fatigue, depression, and anxiety. Another aspect of nonpharmacologic therapy for IPF is lung transplantation for carefully selected individuals. Patient-centered care for IPF requires thoughtful consideration of disease-specific management, symptom management, and management of comorbidities. Central to this process are communication between the patient and provider and engagement of the patient to determine individualized goals of treatment. This approach should include nonpharmacologic therapies, as well as consideration of lung transplantation in a small group of patients.