[Interstitial lung disease linked to fluoxetine].

Fluoxetine (Prozac) is a new anti-depressant introduced on the marked in France since 1989. We report a case of a patient who developed progressive dyspnea without any other symptoms who had been treated with Prozac for nine months. Clinical examination found bilateral basal crepitations. Laboratory assessments showed evidence of inflammation (ESR: 50 mm per hour; CRP 8.9 mg/l), the pulmonary radiograph and thoracic CT scan showed evidence of bilateral diffused interstitial disease. There was also a restrictive ventilatory defect (TLC 59 per cent predicted; FEV1 79 per cent predicted; FVC 70 per cent predicted), effort hypoxaemia and alveolar hyperlymphocytosis (35 per cent). The clinical, radiological and pulmonary function improved and the bronchoalveolar lavage became normal three months after stopping Prozac suggesting a role for this drug in the genesis of this interstitial pneumonia.