Volume 71 Number 2 March 2004	back to contents

From the ¹Department of Pediatric Sciences, and ²Service of Pediatric Cardiology, Università Cattolica Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy.

Address all correspondence to Donato Rigante, M.D., Department of Pediatric Sciences, Università Cattolica Sacro Cuore, Policlinico «A. Gemelli», Largo A. Gemelli, 8 00168 Rome, Italy; E-mail: iclpe@rm.unicatt.it

Accepted for publication September 2003.

ABSTRACT

We report two young girls, the first almost 18 years old and the second 12½ years old, affected with nonspecific interstitial pneumonia, both diagnosed at the age of 11 by open lung biopsy and both being treated with low-dose steroid. Due to insufficient response to conventional therapy and based on positive therapeutic results following the use of subcutaneous recombinant interferon gamma-1b in fibrosing interstitial pneumonias of adults, they were given a 1-year trial of subcutaneous recombinant interferon gamma-lb in association with a steroid. Our experience with these two young patients suggests that interferon gamma-lb cannot be considered as stabilizing or a curative therapy to control or reverse nonspecific interstitial pneumonia unresponsive to steroids alone.

KEYWORDS

Interferon gamma, steroid, nonspecific interstitial pneumonia, pediatrics.

MSSM Home

Back Issues | Indexes | Search | Journal Home