Desquamative interstitial pneumonia

The clinical and pathologic findings of 13 cases of desquamative interstitial pneumonia (DIP) are presented. The disease is characterized by large numbers of intra alveolar mononuclear cells. Eight cases showed mild degrees of fibrosis at the time of biopsy. Six cases had arthritis or clinical and serologic features suggesting altered immunological activity. Three patients died of progressive pulmonary insufficiency, and one patient has progressive pulmonary disability. The poor outcome of these patients correlated with the presence of fibrosis in the biopsy suggests that DIP may be the early stage of some cases of diffuse interstitial pulmonary fibrosis.