Do Osteoarthritis And Mild Rheumatoid Arthritis Affect The Lungs In The Long Run?

Posted on Wed, 12 Sep 2018

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Wed, 12 Sep 2018 Answered on

Fri, 22 Apr 2022 Last reviewed on

Question : Ihave osteoarthritis and mild reumitoid and just recently my rheumatologist xrayed my lungs telling me that osteo can affect the lungs. How? thanks Dy

Answered by Dr. Dr. Praveen Tayal (37 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Long term inflammation can affect lungs.

Detailed Answer:

Hello,

If the rheumatoid arthritis is long standing then it can gradually affect the lungs also. The lung problems most often linked to rheumatoid arthritis include: Scarring within the lungs. Scarring related to long-term inflammation (interstitial lung disease) may cause shortness of breath, chronic dry cough, fatigue, weakness and loss of appetite.The scarring can be detected on X-ray and MRI scan of the lungs. The lung function tests may also be compromised due to it.

I hope this answers your query. In case you have additional questions or doubts, you can forward them to me, and I shall be glad to help you out. Wishing you good health.
Regards,
Dr. Praveen Tayal

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar