Guest guest Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 Hi Marilette, I have a lung treatment question. Do you know of a treatment for the lung condition known as " interstitial pneumonitis " ? The patient has high blood pressure, is prone to coughing, & shortness of breath. Her name is Nancy Kraft incase you want to tune in to her. Thank you, Robin Burbank ============================= Dear Robin, Namaste. Thank you for your email. Medical Background: In interstitial lung disease, the walls of the air sacs may become inflamed, and the tissue (interstitium) that lines and supports the sacs becomes increasingly scarred. Normally, the air sacs are highly elastic, expanding and contracting like small balloons with each breath. But scarring (fibrosis) causes the thin, interstitial tissue to become stiffer and thicker, making the air sacs less flexible. Instead of being soft and elastic, scarred air sacs have the texture of a dry sponge, which makes it more difficult to breathe and harder for oxygen to enter your bloodstream. Scarring in interstitial lung disease seems to occur when an injury to your lungs triggers an abnormal healing response. Ordinarily, your body generates the right amount of tissue to repair damage. But in interstitial lung disease, the repair process goes awry, producing excess scar tissue that increasingly interferes with lung function. One disorder, many causes Because interstitial lung disease has a wide range of causes, determining the reason for an initial injury to lung tissue can be difficult. Some of the many possible precipitating factors include: -Infections. These include viral infections such as cytomegalovirus, a particular problem for people with compromised immune systems; bacterial infections, including pneumonia; fungal infections such as histoplasmosis; and parasitic infections. -Occupation and environmental factors. Long-term exposure to a number of toxins or pollutants can lead to serious lung damage. Workers who routinely inhale silica dust (silicosis), asbestos fibers (asbestosis) or hard metal dust are especially at risk of debilitating lung disease. So are people exposed to certain chemical fumes — sulfuric acid, for example — and ammonia or chlorine gases. But chronic exposure to a wide range of substances, many of them organic, also can damage your lungs. Among these are grain dust, sugar cane, and bird and animal droppings. Other substances, such as moldy hay, can be a problem when they cause a hypersensitivity reaction in the lungs (hypersensitivity pneumonitis). Even bacterial or fungal overgrowth in poorly maintained humidifiers and hot tubs can cause lung damage. -Radiation. A small percentage of people who receive radiation therapy for lung or breast cancer show signs of lung damage months or sometimes years after the initial treatment. The severity of the damage depends on how much of the lung is exposed to radiation, the total amount of radiation administered, whether chemotherapy also is used and the presence of underlying lung disease. -Drugs. Nearly 50 drugs can damage the interstitium of the lungs, especially chemotherapy drugs, medications used to treat heart arrhythmias and other cardiovascular problems, certain psychiatric medications, and some antibiotics. -Other medical conditions. Interstitial lung disease can occur with other disorders. Often, those conditions don't directly attack the lungs, but instead involve systemic processes that affect tissue throughout the body. Among these are connective tissue disorders and hematological diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosis, rheumatoid arthritis, dermatomyositis, polymyositis, Sjogren's syndrome and sarcoidoisis. Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis: When the cause isn't known Although doctors can determine why some people develop interstitial lung disease, in most cases the cause isn't known. Disorders without a known cause are considered a subset of interstitial lung disease and are grouped together under the label idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis or idiopathicinterstitial lung disease. Although the idiopathic diseases have certain features in common, each also has unique characteristics. Usual interstitial pneumonitis is the most prevalent of the idiopathic interstitial lung diseases. Accounting for more than half of all cases, it's so common that the terms " usual interstitial pneumonitis " and " idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis " are often used interchangeably. Because usual interstitial pneumonitis develops in patches, some areas of the lungs are normal, others are inflamed and still others are marked by scar tissue. The disease affects twice as many men as women and usually develops between the ages of 40 and 70. Although the names are nearly identical, pneumonitis is not the same as pneumonia. Pneumonitis is lung inflammation without infection, whereas pneumonia is lung inflammation that results from infection. In addition, pneumonia is generally limited to one or two areas of the lungs, but pneumonitis involves all five lobes — two in the left lung and three in the right. Other, less common types of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis include nonspecific interstitial pneumonitis, bronchiolitis obliterans with organizing pneumonia (BOOP), respiratory bronchiolitis-associated interstitial lung disease, desquamative interstitial pneumonitis, lymphocytic interstitial pneumonitis and acute interstitial pneumonitis. Factors that may make you more susceptible to interstitial lung disease include: -Age. Although infants and children occasionally develop interstitial lung disease, the disorder is much more likely to affect adults. Idiopathic forms of the disease usually develop between the ages of 40 and 70. -Your sex. Given the wide range of disorders classified as interstitial lung disease, it's hard to say definitively whether the disease affects one sex more than the other. But there are a few notable exceptions. Lymphangioleiomyomatosis, for example, a rare disorder in which muscle cells invade and eventually obstruct the airways and blood and lymph vessels in the lungs, affects only women of childbearing age. And lung diseases resulting from exposure to occupational toxins are much more common in men than they are in women. -Exposure to occupational and environmental toxins. If you work in mining, farming or construction or for any reason are exposed to pollutants known to damage your lungs, your risk of interstitial lung disease greatly increases. -Radiation and chemotherapy. Having radiation treatments to your chest or using some chemotherapy drugs makes it more likely that you'll develop lung disease. Risk factors for idiopathic interstitial lung disease Researchers have identified certain factors that appear to increase the risk of idiopathic lung disease, even though the cause of the disorder isn't yet known. -Smoking. Far more smokers and former smokers develop idiopathic interstitial lung diseases than do people who have never smoked. The risk seems to increase with the number of years and the number of cigarettes smoked. -Genetic factors. One rare type of idiopathic interstitial lung disease runs in families. Called familial pulmonary fibrosis, it's similar to other forms of the disease but symptoms tend to appear at a younger age.Although research is being done on familial pulmonary fibrosis, researchers haven't yet identified the genes that may be involved. They have, however, discovered genetic alterations in surfactant proteins — substances in the airways and air sacs that protect the lungs and help them function normally — in people with other forms of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. -Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Researchers are investigating a possible link between idiopathic interstitial lung disease and gastroesophageal reflux disease, which occurs when stomach acid or, occasionally, bile salts back up into your esophagus. Complications Scar tissue formation in your lungs can lead to a series of increasingly serious complications, including: - Low blood oxygen levels (hypoxemia). Because interstitial lung disease reduces the amount of oxygen you take in and the amount that enters your bloodstream, you're likely to develop lower than normal blood oxygen levels. Lack of oxygen can disrupt your body's basic functioning, and severely low levels can be life-threatening. -High blood pressure in your lungs (pulmonary hypertension). Unlike systemic high blood pressure, this condition affects only the arteries in your lungs. It begins when the smallest arteries and capillaries are compressed and obliterated by scar tissue, causing increased resistance to blood flow in your lungs. This in turn raises pressure within the pulmonary arteries. Pulmonary blood pressure can be measured by inserting a small catheter in the right side of the heart or by a noninvasive cardiac echo. Pulmonary hypertension is a serious illness that becomes progressively worse and that eventually may prove fatal. -Right-sided heart failure (cor pulmonale). This serious condition occurs when your heart's right ventricle — which is less muscular than the left — has to pump harder than usual to move blood through obstructed pulmonary arteries. Initially, your heart tries to compensate for the increased workload by thickening its walls and dilating the chamber of the right ventricle to increase the amount of blood it can hold. But this measure works only temporarily, and eventually the right ventricle fails from the extra strain. -Respiratory failure. Often the end stage of chronic lung disease, respiratory failure occurs when blood levels of oxygen become dangerously low or, as in the case of emphysema, carbon dioxide levels become excessively high. Severely low blood oxygen can lead to heart arrhythmias and unconsciousness and high carbon dioxide levels to sleepiness and confusion. Eventually, respiratory failure may prove fatal. Self-care Being involved in your own treatment and staying as healthy as possible are essential to living with interstitial lung disease. For that reason, it's important to: 1. Stop smoking. A strong association exists between smoking and idiopathic interstitial lung disease, the most severe and potentially lethal of the disorders. Smoking is also implicated in hundreds of other life-threatening conditions, including heart disease and cancers of the mouth, throat, esophagus, lung, bladder, kidney, pancreas, stomach, liver, colon, cervix and breast. Talk to your doctor about options for quitting, including smoking cessation programs, which use a variety of proven techniques to help people quit. 2. Exercise regularly. Exercise is a double-edged sword for people with lung disease; it requires an increased intake of oxygen, and it makes symptoms worse. At the same time, exercise is essential for maintaining lung function, for reducing stress, and for maintaining overall health and well-being. If you're already exercising, don't stop. And if you're not currently physically active, consider starting with a moderate workout, such as riding a stationary bike or walking. For instance, you might begin walking at a comfortable pace for just 10 minutes a day. Once you can walk the entire time without stopping to rest, increase the length of your walk by a minute or two each week. Many people with severe lung disease eventually can walk at least 30 minutes nonstop. If you've been prescribed oxygen for regular use, be sure to use it when you exercise. You might also ask your doctor for a referral to an exercise physiologist, who can design an exercise program specifically for you. 3. Eat well. People with lung disease may lose weight both because it's uncomfortable to eat and because of the extra energy it takes to breathe. Yet a nutritionally rich diet that contains adequate calories is essential. The type of food you eat, the time of day and the size of portions can all play a role in getting the nourishment you need. Because it's often easier to breathe when your stomach isn't completely full, you may want to eat smaller meals throughout the day rather than two or three large ones. You might also try choosing lighter fare, such as fruit and salads, rather than rich or fatty foods, which take more energy to digest. A dietitian can give you further guidelines for healthy eating. 4. Enroll in a pulmonary rehabilitation program. These programs vary widely, but in general they focus on improving your ability to exercise and carry out normal activities, managing shortness of breath with breathing techniques, improving your appetite and nutritional status, dealing with the difficult psychological aspects of living with lung disease, and improving overall quality of life. Source - Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research Pranic Healing: 1. Invoke and scan before, during and after treatment. 2. Advanced general sweeping 2 to 3 times. 3. Localized thorough sweeping on the head area, the crown chakra, forehead chakra, ajna chakra, back head minor chakra, and the spine. 4. Localized thorough sweeping on the front and back heart chakra. Energize the heart through the back heart chakra with LWG then with LWR. This is to strengthen the physical heart. 5. Localized thorough sweeping on the front, sides, lower portions and back of the lungs alternately with LWG and LWO. Energize the lungs directly through the back of the lungs with LWG, LWB then ordinary LWV. 6. Localized thorough sweeping on the jaw minor chakras, throat chakra, secondary thoat chakra. Energize with a little of LWG then with more of ordinary LWV. 7. Localized thorough sweeping on the front and back spleen chakra, front and back solar plexus chakra, navel chakra and the meng mein chakra. Rescan frontally and sideways. Inhibit the meng mein chakra with LB simultaneously will it to become smaller, 1/2 to 2/3 the average size of the other major chakras. Rescan the chakras. If the solar plexus chakra is still overactivated, inhibit it with LB simultaneously will it to become samller. Do not over inhibit the solar plexus chakra. 8. Repeat localized thorough sweeping on the head area. Slightly energize the crown chakra, ajna chakra, back head minor chakra with LWG, LWB then ordinary LWV. Do not over energize. Rescan the head area, apply more localized sweeping. 9. Localized thorough sweeping on the navel and basic chakras. Energize with W. 10. Stabilize and release projected pranic energy. 11. Repeat treatment 3 times per week. Love, Marilette Source materials for all MCKS Pranic Healing protocols are taken from the following books by Master Choa Kok Sui: * Miracles Through Pranic Healing * Advanced Pranic Healing * Pranic Psychotherapy * Pranic Crystal Healing. NOTICE: 1. Pranic Healing is not intended to replace orthodox medicine, but rather to complement it. If symptoms persist or if the ailment is severe, please consult immediately a medical doctor and a Certified Pranic Healer. 2. Pranic Healers who are are not medical doctors should not prescribe nor interfere with prescribed medications and/or medical treatments. ~ Master Choa Kok Sui " Miracles do not happen in contradiction to nature, but only to that which is known to us in nature. " ~ St. Augustine Ask or read the up to date Pranic Healing protocols by joining the group through http://health./ MCKS Pranic Healing gateway website: http://www.pranichealing.org. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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