Treatment of Cystic Fibrosis

Cystic fibrosis is often treated at home with antibiotics, special exercises for draining sputum-including physical therapy for the chest, physical exercise, and aerosols-as well as diet therapy, which emphasizes the replacement of deficient digestive enzymes. Surgery is sometimes performed to correct physical complications. Because some of the tenacity of the mucus and secretions results from increased amounts of DNA, a new approach is the administration of Pulmozyme, which contains an enzyme that breaks down the DNA, thereby liquefying the secretions and making them easier to clear.

Genetic Keys to Cystic Fibrosis

Scientists have recently isolated the gene responsible for cystic fibrosis and have begun developing treatment techniques that will repair the genetic defect in a patient's lung tissue.

Researchers have also identified an abnormality in the regulation of a cellular channel through which chloride ions move that may play a role in the disease. Both of these scientific discoveries promise better understanding of cystic fibrosis, better forms of treatment, and possible prevention.