Yes. If left untreated, interstitial lung disease can cause life-threatening complications, including:
Pulmonary hypertension. High blood pressure that affects the arteries in your lungs
Right-sided heart failure (cor pulmonale). When the heart’s right ventricle (the lower right chamber) pumps harder than usual to move blood through obstructed arteries, it can sometimes fail from the extra strain. This is usually a complication of pulmonary hypertension.
Respiratory failure. This is the end stage of chronic ILD, when severely low oxygen and rising arterial pressure causes heart failure.