Library · Physiology
Chronic inflammation
Make it clearer
Chronic inflammation is the slow, long version of inflammation: instead of days, it lasts months or years, and its visible signs are far less striking.
What sets it apart is which cells occupy the tissue. Here the ones in charge are macrophages, cells that devour debris, along with lymphocytes and plasma cells from the immune system. All of them release cytokines, which are chemical signals, and also growth factors and enzymes.
It settles in when the body cannot get the cause out of the way. It may be a mycobacterium that resists the defenses, it may be silica dust that cannot be digested, or it may be the immune system itself attacking healthy tissue, which is what happens in an autoimmune disease such as rheumatoid arthritis.
And since nothing removes the cause, destruction and repair move forward at the same time. It is a construction site doing repairs while the fire still burns, and that is why it leaves behind granulomas and fibrosis, which is internal scarring.
In brief
Chronic inflammation is slow and long: it lasts months or years, and its classic signs are far less visible.
Its hallmark is the arrival in the tissue of macrophages, lymphocytes, and plasma cells, which release cytokines, growth factors, and enzymes.
It sets in when the cause is not cleared: mycobacteria that resist, silica dust that cannot be digested, or an autoimmune attack such as rheumatoid arthritis.
So damage and repair advance together, leaving fibrosis and granulomas.
A construction site doing repairs while the fire still burns.
Sources (2)
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingChronic Inflammation, StatPearlsPublished
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingPathology, Inflammation, StatPearlsPublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
Updated