From the perspective of state differentiation and treatment， it is believed that the pathogenesis of acute respiratory distress syndrome （ARDS） is that evil poisons injured the lungs， and the lung qi suddenly collapsed， then blocked and exhausted， and the qi failure to control blood and liquid， then the fluids overflow outside the vessels， and damp phlegm， stasis， and toxins became knotted up in the body， which ultimately leads to qi dysfunction， and a series of symptom arise， so qi impairment is the principal mechanism of ARDS. A combination of Chinese and Western medicine was proposed to treat ARDS by combining tangible qi and intangible qi， using Chinese herbal medicine to boost qi and relieve collapse， percolate and drain dampness with bland medicinals， resolve toxins and dissolve stasis， and regulate qi， and combining with Western medicine to assist qi circulation to improve qi's consolidation， propulsion， and transformation， so as to make the evil qi go away， the positive qi restored， the viscera qi circulated， qi， blood， yin， and yang connected， and the activities of life maintained， and thus to achieve the goal of treating ARDS by integrated Chinese medicine and Western medicine.

BACKGROUNDIdiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a lethal chronic interstitial lung disease (ILD) of unknown cause and having a variable and unpredictable course. This study aimed to summarize the clinical features and follow-up outcomes and to identify potential factors useful for the assessment of prognosis in IPF.

METHODSTwo hundred and ten patients hospitalized and diagnosed as IPF in our unit from January 1999 to June 2007 were enrolled into this study. The baseline demographic, clinical, radiologic and physiologic characteristics were summarized. Clinical follow-up data until February 2010 were collected, and the median survival time and 1-, 2-, and 5-year survival rates, as well as the influences of the summarized baseline variables on the prognosis were analyzed.

RESULTSThe age at diagnosis as IPF was (64 ± 10) years, the duration before diagnosis of 106 patients (50%) was shorter than 2 years, and 73% were males. One hundred and forty-five patients (69%) had a history of smoking with a median pack-year of 18. Eighty-nine patients (42%) had emphysema and 62 patients (29%) pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). One hundred and twenty-four patients were followed up, of which 99 patients died from various causes including respiratory failure related to IPF (93%). The follow-up period was (21 ± 23) months. The median survival time was 38 months. The 1-, 2-, and 5-year survival rates were 61%, 52%, and 39%, respectively. Multivariate analysis showed clubbing, PAH, duration from initial onset to diagnosis, and forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1)/forced vital capacity (FVC) were independent prognostic indicators of IPF.

CONCLUSIONIPF patients who have clubbing, PAH, a higher FEV1/FVC, and a short duration from initial onset to diagnosis have a poorer outcome.

Aged ; Emphysema ; diagnosis ; mortality ; physiopathology ; Female ; Humans ; Hypertension, Pulmonary ; diagnosis ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis ; diagnosis ; mortality ; physiopathology ; Male ; Middle Aged