Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0032273 (pneumoconiosis)
 1,578 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Pneumoconioses produced by intratracheal applications of various dusts (quartz, coal, cadmium and lead sulfide) in rats were investigated by electron microscopy in order to follow the pathway of the dust particles from the alveoli into the pulmonary interstitium. As postulated by Spencer in 1977 on the basis of light microscopic investigations, the dust particles produce necroses of the alveolar septae ('alveolar ulcers'). TWo forms of necroses appear to occur: with a less severe dust exposure, individual pneumocytes and their basement membrane are destroyed by dust particles. Dust-laden, macrophages are deposited here which are displaced into the stroma after re-epithelization of the alveolar defect. On the other hand, with massive dust exposure, almost all pneumocytes of the affected alveoli become necrotic. The affected alveoli collapse and are replaced by connective tissue, so that the dust is situated in the connective tissue stroma. A transcellular penetration of the dust particles into the pulmonary interstitium or an immigration of dust-laden macrophages into the pulmonary stroma through the intercellular junctions of intact pneumocytes was not observed in any of the pneumoconiosis models.
 ...
PMID:Electron microscopic investigations on dust penetration into the pulmonary interstitium in experimental pneumoconioses. 710 Jun 60

A 56-year-old man had worked as a furniture painter and had been exposed to tonoko polishing powder for 30 years. He had complained of dyspnea on exertion for 7 years, and was admitted to our hospital in 1991. A chest X-ray film revealed large opacities and emphysematous changes in both lung fields. Tonoko pneumoconiosis was diagnosed after transbronchial lung biopsy. Home oxygen therapy was given because of progressive hypoxemia, but the patient died of respiratory failure. At autopsy, examination of the lungs showed severe emphysematous changes, and collapse of alveoli. Many gray masses resembling coating cement were seen especially in the upper lobes. Microscopical examination showed that the large opacities were composed of hyaline nodules, similar to silicotic nodules, with anthracosis. Scanning electron microscopy with X-ray microanalysis revealed a high concentration of titanium in the gray mass. A low dose of titanium would not be expected to induce fibrotic changes in the lung, but a high dose and long-term exposure might have that effect. Titanium contained in paint might have exacerbated tonoko pneumoconiosis in this patient.
 ...
PMID:[Tonoko pneumoconiosis with deposition of titanium]. 897 79

The tracheobronchial lumen has a continuous horseshoe arch morphology. We formed Z-stents accordingly to support the weakened cartilagenous portions. With this type of stent we treated a patient with acquired saber-sheath type tracheobronchomalacia (TBM), Rayl's type II, Johnson's grade III, whose condition was aggravated even under positive end expiratory pressure (PEEP) therapy. The patient improved gradually. No immediate complication was observed. Bronchofiberscopic examination revealed that the tracheobronchial arcade was closely strut-braced and showed no expiratory collapse. Six months later, when the patient was intubated due to asthmatic attacks, tissue ingrowth through the stent was found and removed. There was no recurrence of TBM. The patient died 2 years later of pneumoconiosis.
 ...
PMID:A dedicated Z-stent for acquired saber-sheath tracheobronchomalacia. 935 17

Estimating the burden of exposure-related diffuse lung disease in terms of health effects and economic burden remains challenging. Labor statistics are inadequate to define the scope of the problem, and few studies have analyzed the prevalence of exposure-related illnesses and the subsequent health care cost. Well-defined exposures, such as those associated with coal mines, asbestos mines, and stonecutting, have led to more accurate assessment of prevalence and cost. As governmental regulation of workplace exposure has increased, the prevalence of diseases such as silicosis and coal workers' pneumoconiosis has diminished. However, the health and economic effects of diseases with long latency periods, such as asbestosis and mesothelioma, continue to increase in the short term. Newer exposures, such as those related to air pollution, nylon flock, and the World Trade Center collapse, have added to these costs. As a result, estimates of cost for occupational diseases, including respiratory illnesses, exceed $26 billion annually, and the true economic burden is likely much higher.
 ...
PMID:The burden of exposure-related diffuse lung disease. 1922 57