Integrating routine blood biomarkers and artificial intelligence for supporting diagnosis of silicosis in engineered stone workers.

Engineered stone silicosis (ESS), primarily caused by inhaling respirable crystalline silica, poses a significant occupational health risk globally. ESS has no effective treatment and presents a rapid progression from simple silicosis (SS) to progressive massive fibrosis (PMF), with respiratory failure and death. Despite the use of diagnostic methods like chest x-rays and high-resolution computed tomography, early detection of silicosis remains challenging.

Analysis of Immune Cell Subsets in Peripheral Blood from Patients with Engineered Stone Silica-Induced Lung Inflammation.

Silicosis caused by engineered stone (ES-silicosis) is an emerging worldwide issue characterized by inflammation and fibrosis in the lungs. To our knowledge, only a few reports have investigated leukocyte/lymphocyte subsets in ES-silicosis patients. The present study was designed to explore the proportions of the main lymphocyte subsets in ES-silicosis patients stratified into two groups, one with simple silicosis (SS) and the other with a more advanced state of the disease, defined as progressive massive fibrosis (PMF).

Plasma Cytokine Profiling Reveals Differences between Silicotic Patients with Simple Silicosis and Those with Progressive Massive Fibrosis Caused by Engineered Stone.

Engineered stone silicosis has become an occupational epidemic disease that progresses rapidly to progressive massive fibrosis with respiratory failure and death, and there is no effective treatment. Silica deposition in the lung triggers a series of inflammatory reactions with the participation of multiple cytokines and cellular mediators whose role in the development and progression of the disease is largely unknown. We hypothesized that differences in plasma cytokine levels exist between patients diagnosed with simple silicosis (SS) and patients diagnosed with progressive massive fibrosis (PMF).

Inflammatory indices obtained from routine blood tests show an inflammatory state associated with disease progression in engineered stone silicosis patients.

Patients with silicosis caused by occupational exposure to engineered stone (ES) present a rapid progression from simple silicosis (SS) to progressive massive fibrosis (PMF). Patient classification follows international rules based on radiology and high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT), but limited studies, if any, have explored biomarkers from routine clinical tests that can be used as predictors of disease status. Our objective was thus to investigate circulating biomarker levels and systemic inflammatory indices in ES silicosis patients whose exposure to ES dust ended several years ago.

Demographic, exposure and clinical characteristics in a multinational registry of engineered stone workers with silicosis.

Objectives: To investigate differences in workplace exposure, demographic and clinical findings in engineered stone (ES) workers from a multinational consortium using the Engineered Stone Silicosis Investigators (ESSI) Global Silicosis Registry.

Methods: With ethics board approval in Israel, Spain, Australia and the USA, ES workers ages 18+ with a physician diagnosis of work-related silicosis were enrolled. Demographic, occupational, radiologic, pulmonary function and silica-related comorbidity data were compared cross-sectionally among countries using analysis of variance, Fisher's exact tests and logistic regression.

Current global perspectives on silicosis-Convergence of old and newly emergent hazards.

Silicosis not a disease of the past. It is an irreversible, fibrotic lung disease specifically caused by exposure to respirable crystalline silica (RCS) dust. Over 20,000 incident cases of silicosis were identified in 2017 and millions of workers continue to be exposed to RCS.

Compositional and structural analysis of engineered stones and inorganic particles in silicotic nodules of exposed workers.

Background: Engineered stone silicosis is an emerging disease in many countries worldwide produced by the inhalation of respirable dust of engineered stone. This silicosis has a high incidence among young workers, with a short latency period and greater aggressiveness than silicosis caused by natural materials. Although the silica content is very high and this is the key factor, it has been postulated that other constituents in engineered stones can influence the aggressiveness of the disease.

Artificial Stone Silicosis: Accumulation of errors in the resurgence of an occupational disease: A qualitative study.

Background: Exposure to artificial stone machining, under the conditions in which marble workers work with this new product, can cause silicosis.

Objective: To examine the experiences of marble workers affected, both in workshop and during home installation of countertops, before diagnosis of silicosis.

Methods: Qualitative study in which 10 open-ended semistructured interviews were conducted with marble workers diagnosed with silicosis after machining artificial stone countertops in Cádiz, Spain.

Portable Oxygen Therapy: Is the 6-Minute Walking Test Overestimating the Actual Oxygen Needs?

The appropriate titration for the personalized oxygen needs of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and severe hypoxemia is a determining factor in the success of long-term oxygen therapy. There are no standardized procedures to assist in determining the patient's needs during the physical activities of daily life. Despite that effort tests are a wide broad approach, further research concerning the development of protocols to titrate O therapy is needed.

Artificial Stone Silicosis: Rapid Progression Following Exposure Cessation.

Background: Silicosis is rapidly emerging in high-income countries in relation to the replacement of natural stone with artificial stone, especially in the manufacturing and installation of kitchen and bathroom countertops. Progression of this form of silicosis following the cessation of exposure is unknown.

Research Question: The objective of this study was to determine the radiologic progression and lung function in individuals with artificial stone silicosis.

Automated Home Oxygen Delivery for Patients with COPD and Respiratory Failure: A New Approach.

Long-term oxygen therapy (LTOT) has become standard care for the treatment of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other severe hypoxemic lung diseases. The use of new portable O concentrators (POC) in LTOT is being expanded. However, the issue of oxygen titration is not always properly addressed, since POCs rely on proper use by patients.

Physiological closed-loop control in intelligent oxygen therapy: A review.

Background And Objective: Oxygen therapy has become a standard care for the treatment of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other hypoxemic chronic lung diseases. In current systems, manually continuous adjustment of O flow rate is a time-consuming task, often unsuccessful, that requires experienced staff. The primary aim of this systematic review is to collate and report on the principles, algorithms and accuracy of autonomous physiological close-loop controlled oxygen devices as well to present recommendations for future research and studies in this area.

Use of predictive algorithms in-home monitoring of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma: A systematic review.

Major reported factors associated with the limited effectiveness of home telemonitoring interventions in chronic respiratory conditions include the lack of useful early predictors, poor patient compliance and the poor performance of conventional algorithms for detecting deteriorations. This article provides a systematic review of existing algorithms and the factors associated with their performance in detecting exacerbations and supporting clinical decisions in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or asthma. An electronic literature search in Medline, Scopus, Web of Science and Cochrane library was conducted to identify relevant articles published between 2005 and July 2015.

Computerised Analysis of Telemonitored Respiratory Sounds for Predicting Acute Exacerbations of COPD.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is one of the commonest causes of death in the world and poses a substantial burden on healthcare systems and patients' quality of life. The largest component of the related healthcare costs is attributable to admissions due to acute exacerbation (AECOPD). The evidence that might support the effectiveness of the telemonitoring interventions in COPD is limited partially due to the lack of useful predictors for the early detection of AECOPD.

Detecting COPD exacerbations early using daily telemonitoring of symptoms and k-means clustering: a pilot study.

COPD places an enormous burden on the healthcare systems and causes diminished health-related quality of life. The highest proportion of human and economic cost is associated with admissions for acute exacerbation of respiratory symptoms (AECOPD). Since prompt detection and treatment of exacerbations may improve outcomes, early detection of AECOPD is a critical issue.

Development and Evaluation of an Automated, Home-Based, Electronic Questionnaire for Detecting COPD Exacerbations.

Collaboration between patients and their medical and technical experts enabled the development of an automated questionnaire for the early detection of COPD exacerbations (AQCE). The questionnaire consisted of fourteen questions and was implemented on a computer system for use by patients at home in an un-supervised environment. Psychometric evaluation was conducted after a 6-month field trial.

Computerized analysis of respiratory sounds during COPD exacerbations.

Acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) is a major event in the natural course of the disease, and is associated with significant mortality and socioeconomic impact. Abnormal respiratory sounds are commonly present in patients with AECOPD. Computerized analysis of these sounds can assist in diagnosis and in evaluation during follow-up.

Computer-aided diagnosis of pneumonia in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Background: Early diagnosis of pneumonia and discrimination between this disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbations in patients with COPD are crucial for optimal clinical management and treatment.

Objectives: To examine the use of computerized analysis of respiratory sounds, a hybrid system based on principal component analysis (PCA) and probabilistic neural networks (PNNs), to aid the detection of coexisting pneumonia in patients with COPD.

Methods And Materials: A convenience sample of 58 patients with COPD (25 patients hospitalized for community-acquired pneumonia and 33 owing to acute exacerbation of COPD) was studied.

Endoscopic sealing of bronchopleural fistulas with submucosal injection of a tissue expander: a novel technique.

The occurrence of a bronchopleural fistula (BPF) continues to represent a challenging management problem, and is associated with high morbidity and mortality. A novel and successful technique that uses submucosal injection of a tissue expander for bronchoscopic occlusion of BPFs has been designed. This method may be used either alone or in combination with bronchoscopic instillation of n-butyl-cyanoacrylate glue.

Serum levels of soluble mesothelin-related peptides in malignant and nonmalignant asbestos-related pleural disease: relation with past asbestos exposure.

Background: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) results from malignant transformation of mesothelial cells. Past asbestos exposure represents a major risk factor for MPM and other benign pleural disease. Soluble mesothelin-related peptides (SMRP) have been regarded as a promising serum biomarker for MPM.