Desquamative interstitial pneumonia associated with chrysotile asbestos fibres

The drywall construction trade has in the past been associated with exposure to airborne asbestos fibres. This paper reports a drywall construction worker with 32 years of dust exposure who developed dyspnoea and diminished diffusing capacity, and showed diffuse irregular opacities on chest radiogra...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:British Journal of Industrial Medicine 1991-05, Vol.48 (5), p.332-337
Main Authors: Freed, J A, Miller, A, Gordon, R E, Fischbein, A, Kleinerman, J, Langer, A M
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Asbestos
Asbestos - adverse effects
Asbestos - analysis
Asbestos, Serpentine
Asbestosis
Biological and medical sciences
Biopsies
Chemical and industrial products toxicology. Toxic occupational diseases
Drywall
Fibrosis
Humans
Inorganic dusts (pneumoconiosises) and organic dusts (byssinosis etc.)
Lung - physiopathology
Lung - ultrastructure
Lungs
Macrophages
Male
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
Occupational Diseases - etiology
Occupational Diseases - pathology
Occupational Diseases - physiopathology
Occupational Exposure - adverse effects
Pathology
Pneumonia
Pulmonary alveoli
Pulmonary Fibrosis - etiology
Pulmonary Fibrosis - pathology
Pulmonary Fibrosis - physiopathology
Respiratory Function Tests
Toxicology
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Summary:The drywall construction trade has in the past been associated with exposure to airborne asbestos fibres. This paper reports a drywall construction worker with 32 years of dust exposure who developed dyspnoea and diminished diffusing capacity, and showed diffuse irregular opacities on chest radiography. He did not respond to treatment with corticosteroids. Open lung biopsy examination showed desquamative interstitial pneumonia. Only a single ferruginous body was seen on frozen section, but tissue examination by electron microscopy showed an extraordinary pulmonary burden of mineral dust with especially high concentrations of chrysotile asbestos fibres. This report emphasises the need to consider asbestos fibre as an agent in the aetiology of desquamative interstitial pneumonia. The coexistent slight interstitial fibrosis present in this case is also considered to have resulted from exposure to mineral dust, particularly ultramicroscopic asbestos fibres.
ISSN:0007-1072
1351-0711
1470-7926
DOI:10.1136/oem.48.5.332