cryptogenic fibrosing alveolitis

Cryptogenic fibrosing alveolitis (CFA) is a fatal condition of unknown cause.

The word cryptogenic also appears in the names of some disease entities, when the situation is sufficiently common to be considered a diagnosis in its own right (e.g. cryptogenic fibrosing alveolitis).

The term used for UIP in the British literature is cryptogenic fibrosing alveolitis, a term that has fallen out of favor since the basic underlying pathology is now thought to be fibrosis, not inflammation.