Loefflers syndrome overview
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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1] Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Soroush Seifirad, M.D.[2]
Overview
Loeffler syndrome is rare a form of eosinophilic pulmonary disease, which is characterized by mild respiratory symptoms such as dry cough, wheezing, dyspnea, fever, and blood-tinged sputum containing eosinophil-derived Charcot-Leyden crystals, fleeting migratory pulmonary opacities in chest x-ray, and peripheral blood eosinophilia. Parasitic infections, especially Ascaris lumbricoides, may be the cause, but an identifiable etiologic agent is not found in up to one-third of patients. Transpulmonary passage of helminth larvae is the most precise definition of Loeffler syndrome in the literature, nevertheless, there are plenty of controversial definitions under the cluster of eosinophilic pulmonary disorders. The diagnosis of Löffler syndrome is based on characteristic and often transient respiratory symptoms, chest x-ray findings, and peripheral blood eosinophilia. It requires the exclusion of other types of eosinophilic lung disease. such as acute eosinophilic pneumonia which is a distinct entity with acute onset, severe hypoxemia, and a lack of increased blood eosinophils at the onset of disease. Löffler syndrome is a self-limiting condition which is usually resolved within 3-4 weeks.