Fibroza

Fibroza, known medically as fibrosis, is the abnormal accumulation of connective tissue components, especially collagen, in a tissue. It is a wound-healing response that becomes maladaptive after chronic injury or inflammation, leading to scar formation and progressive impairment of organ function. Fibrosis can affect many organs, most notably the liver, lungs, kidneys, heart, and skin.

Pathophysiology: Chronic injury activates fibroblasts and myofibroblasts, promoting collagen deposition and extracellular matrix remodeling. Signaling pathways such as TGF-β and PDGF drive the process, while matrix degradation is reduced. The result is scar tissue that can distort tissue architecture and function. In some conditions fibrosis can stabilize or regress with removing the cause; in others it progresses.

Clinical features depend on the affected organ. Hepatic fibrosis can lead to cirrhosis and portal hypertension; pulmonary fibrosis causes progressive shortness of breath; renal fibrosis contributes to chronic kidney disease; cardiac fibrosis may accompany heart failure; skin fibrosis occurs in systemic sclerosis. Diagnosis combines medical history, imaging methods (including elastography), serum biomarkers, and often biopsy to stage the fibrosis.

Treatment aims to stop ongoing injury and manage complications. There is no universal cure for fibrosis, but therapies exist for specific conditions. Antifibrotic drugs such as pirfenidone and nintedanib are approved for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis; other organs rely on disease-specific interventions (antivirals for viral hepatitis, abstinence from alcohol, immunosuppression for autoimmune causes). Prognosis varies with organ involvement and stage of fibrosis.