Figure 4.

Diagnostic algorithm for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). Patients with suspected IPF (i.e. patients with unexplained dyspnoea on exertion and/or cough with evidence of interstitial lung disease (ILD)) should be carefully evaluated for identifiable causes of ILD. In the absence of an identifiable cause for ILD, a high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) scan demonstrating usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP) pattern is diagnostic of IPF. In the absence of UIP pattern on HRCT, IPF can be diagnosed by the combination of specific HRCT and histopathological patterns. The accuracy of the diagnosis of IPF increases with multidisciplinary discussion (MDD) among ILD experts. ^#: as per table 3. Reproduced from [2] with permission from the publisher.