Occupational And Environmental Auses Of Lung Disease

Question 1

Name some of the occupational causes of lung disease

Answer 1

Shipyard builders- exposed to asbestos

Builders- exposed to asbestos

Coal miners- inhalation of coal dust and asbestos.

Farmer- hypersensitivity pneumonitis reaction known as famers lung from mould hay

Question 2

What can exposure to asbestos cause?

What occupations are exposed to this?

Answer 2

Mostly diseases of the pleura

Mesothelioma- cancer of the pleural lining of the lungs meaning the lungs cant expand properly anymore

Pleural plaques
Pleural effusion
Pleuritis (acute illness of pleural effusion)
Diffuse pleural thickening

Miners, shipyards, boilers, pipers

Question 3

Name some environmental factors contributing to lung disease?

Answer 3

Smoking- causing lung cancer, emphysema, chronic bronchitis, copd

Smog- made from poor combustion of fossil fuels composed of nitrogen oxide/dioxide

Traffic fumes

Dioxins- accumulations from the natural food chain

Question 4

How does social deprivation contribute to lung disease?

Answer 4

• more likely to live in mouldy environment from dampness
• more likely to smoke
• perhaps have less access to clean water and pathogens could be present in the water drunk

Question 5

What bronchial components are encompased as intersititial?

Answer 5

The alveoli or terminal bronchi

Question 6

What is simple pneumoconiosis?

What occupation can you get it from?

Answer 6

Where there is a chest xray with miliary shadow (dots), they have no symptoms just the xray appearance. This can progress to complicated pneumoconiosis

Get it from working in the coal mines

Question 7

What is complicated pneumoconiosis? Symptom of this?

What occupation gets this?

Answer 7

Where there is progressive fibrosis in the lungs displaying a restrictive lung pattern with breathlessness

Coal miners get this

Question 8

What is caplan’s syndrome?

Answer 8

Rheymatoid pneumoconiosis where there are cavitating nodules in the lungs