Progressive massive fibrosis in silica-exposed workers. High-resolution computed tomography findings.

Objective: To evaluate the radiological characteristics of conglomerate masses using high-resolution computed tomography of the chest.

Methods: From among the patients treated between 1986 and 2004 at the Antonio Pedro University Hospital, 75 patients with silicosis and massive fibrosis, most working in the field of sandblasting, were selected for study. These patients were submitted to a clinical evaluation, chest X-ray and high-resolution computed tomography of the chest.

Conglomerated masses of silicosis in sandblasters: high-resolution CT findings.

The purpose of this study was to describe the high-resolution CT aspects of the silicosis and progressive massive fibrosis in sandblasters. The study was performed with 25 consecutive patients with silicosis and large opacities on chest radiography according to the International Labor Office (ILO) classification of pneumoconiosis. All patients presented with conglomerate masses involving the upper lobes, and in 92% of the cases the lesions were located in the posterior region of the lungs.

The role of bronchoalveolar lavage in quantifying inhaled particles in silicosis.

Silicosis is a disease caused by inhalation and deposition of crystalline silica that produces a fibrous tissue reaction. Bronchoalveolar lavage is a noninvasive technique that allows identifying particles, thus characterizing exposure to mineral dust. The aim of this work was to study bronchoalveolar lavage as a mean of estimating the amount of alveolar particles in different forms of silicosis.

[Lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS): criteria for selecting patient in Antonio Pedro Hospital, Federal Fluminense University, Niter i city, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil].

Background: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (CPOD) is an important problem in Brazil and other countries. The clinical treatment of ambulatory patients is now reasonably standardized. Lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS) is an alternative of surgical treatment of emphysema (aside from lung transplantation).

[Comparative study of high resolution computer-assisted tomography with chest radiograph in silicosis].

The diagnosis of silicosis is based on the history of exposure to silica dust associated with the radiological alterations compatible with the disease. With the main objective of comparing the alterations found in the chest radiography to those of high resolution computed tomography 49 patients with silicosis were selected. These imaging methods were evaluated separately by three readers and the results summarized through the median of the readings.