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Summary
Cystic fibrosis (CF) is an inherited disease of the mucus and sweat glands. It affects mostly your lungs, pancreas, liver, intestines, sinuses, and sex organs. CF causes your mucus to be thick and sticky. The mucus clogs the lungs, causing breathing problems and making it easy for bacteria to grow. This can lead to repeated lung infections and lung damage.
The symptoms and severity of CF can vary. Some people have serious problems from birth. Others have a milder version of the disease that doesn't show up until they are teens or young adults. Sometimes you will have few symptoms, but later you may have more symptoms.
CF is diagnosed through various tests, such as gene, blood, and sweat tests. There is no cure for CF, but treatments have improved greatly in recent years. In the past, most deaths from CF were in children and teenagers. Today, with improved treatments, some people who have CF are living into their forties, fifties, or older. Treatments may include chest physical therapy, nutritional and respiratory therapies, medicines, and exercise.
NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
- About Cystic Fibrosis (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)
-
Breakdown in Breathing: The Complexities of Cystic Fibrosis
(National Institutes of Health)
- Cystic Fibrosis (American Lung Association)
-
Cystic Fibrosis (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)
Symptoms
-
What Are the Signs and Symptoms of Cystic Fibrosis? (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)
Diagnosis and Tests
- CF Mutation Panel (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
- Cystic Fibrosis (CF) Respiratory Screen: Sputum (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
- Cystic Fibrosis (CF): Chloride Sweat Test (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
- Cystic Fibrosis: Prenatal Screening and Diagnosis (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) Also in Spanish
-
How Is Cystic Fibrosis Diagnosed? (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)
- Newborn Screening for CF (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)
- Sweat Test (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
- Trypsin and Chymotrypsin Test (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
- Trypsinogen Test (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
Prevention and Risk Factors
- Cystic Fibrosis and Pregnancy (March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation) Also in Spanish
Treatments and Therapies
-
How Is Cystic Fibrosis Treated? (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)
- Therapies for Cystic Fibrosis (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)
Living With
- Airway Clearance Techniques (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)
- Basics of Postural Drainage and Percussion (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)
- Exercise and Cystic Fibrosis (CF) (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation) - PDF
-
Living with Cystic Fibrosis (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)
-
MedlinePlus: Pulmonary Rehabilitation (National Library of Medicine)
Also in Spanish
- Nutrition for Your Child with Cystic Fibrosis (Four to Seven Years) (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation) - PDF Also in Spanish
- Nutrition for Your Infant with Cystic Fibrosis (Birth to One Year) (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation) - PDF Also in Spanish
- Nutrition for Your Toddler with Cystic Fibrosis (One to Three Years) (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation) - PDF Also in Spanish
- Pancreatic Enzyme Replacement in People with Cystic Fibrosis (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation) - PDF Also in Spanish
- Supporting Nutrition: Understanding Tubefeeding (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation) - PDF
Related Issues
- Allergic Bronchopulmonary Aspergillosis (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)
- Basics of Lung Care (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)
- CF and School (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)
- Cystic Fibrosis-Related Diabetes (CFRD): Daily Management (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation) - PDF
- Germs and Staying Healthy (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)
- Influenza (the Flu) (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)
- Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)
Genetics
-
Genetics Home Reference: cystic fibrosis (National Library of Medicine)
-
Learning about Cystic Fibrosis (National Human Genome Research Institute)
-
What Causes Cystic Fibrosis? (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)
Videos and Tutorials
- What Is Cystic Fibrosis? (Dolan DNA Learning Center)
Statistics and Research
- Drug Development Pipeline (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)
- Improved Survival of Patients with Cystic Fibrosis (American College of Physicians) - PDF
Clinical Trials
-
ClinicalTrials.gov: Cystic Fibrosis (National Institutes of Health)
- Clinical Research (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)
Journal ArticlesReferences and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
Find an Expert
Children
- Cystic Fibrosis (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
- Cystic Fibrosis (Nemours Foundation)
- Cystic Fibrosis: Diet and Nutrition (Nemours Foundation)
Teenagers
- Cystic Fibrosis (Nemours Foundation)
- Cystic Fibrosis: Diet and Nutrition (Nemours Foundation)
Patient Handouts
- Cystic fibrosis Also in Spanish
- Cystic fibrosis - nutritional considerations Also in Spanish
- How to breathe when you are short of breath Also in Spanish
- Neonatal cystic fibrosis screening Also in Spanish
- Postural drainage Also in Spanish
- Sweat electrolytes test Also in Spanish
