Diaphragmatic dysfunction in interstitial lung disease: An ultrasonography study

Background : using non-volitional tests, respiratory muscle dysfunction has recently been implicated in exercise limitation in patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD). However ultrasound (US) evaluation of diaphragm has not been already described in these patients. Aims: In ILD patients, we evaluated the diaphragm with US and correlated these findings with pulmonary functional tests. Methods: In ten ILD patients, we performed US of the right diaphragm to evaluate mobility during quiet breathing (QB) and deep breathing (DB) and thickness at functional residual capacity (FRC) and at total lung capacity (TLC). We compared these results with 12 healthy volunteers. All patients performed spirometry. Results: The mean age of the patients was 58 years (±15 SD) and the mean forced vital capacity (FVC) was 57.4±18% of the predicted. In ILD patients, the motion of right diaphragm during DB is decreased when compared to volunteers (4.4±1,87 cm vs 7.48±0.81 p Conclusions: In patients with ILD, the diaphragmatic mobility is reduced during deep breathing and this reduction is strongly correlated with the pulmonary volume.