Diseases of the Lung Resulting from Occupational Dusts other than Silica

作者：K. M. A. Perry · 发表于：Thorax · 年份：1947 · DOI：10.1136/thx.2.2.91 · 被引用次数：32 · 研究领域：Occupational and environmental lung diseases

It is only in recent years that considerable interest has been given to the dusts to which men are exposed at their work, even though silicosis is known to have occurred in prehistoric times.Many dusts are now recognized as dangerous, and in the extreme it may even be doubted whether any dust can be regarded as harmless.It is rational at least to suppose that the lung cannot become a physiological dust trap and yet retain its elasticity.It seems possible that any dust, no matter how innocuous in small concentrations, would in large enough quantity eventually overwhelm the defences of the lung and accumulate in such amounts as to impair function; such a form of lung disease would be the result of causes of a mechanical nature-the physical presence of large amounts of inert foreign material.The term "benign pneumoconiosis " has been given to this type of disease in order to contrast it with diseases resulting from the inhalation of siliceous matter.But besides this group of conditions occupational dust may give rise to inflammatory lesions, allergic responses, and neoplastic changes.INFLAMMATORY CHANGES Inflammatory changes may be caused by inorganic metals, such as manganese, beryllium, vanadium, and osmium, giving.rise to a chemical pneumonitis; and by organic matter, such as decaying hay and grain, bagasse, cotton fibre, and similar substances where the aetiology is somewhat obscure, though fungi are frequently blamed. ManganeseManganese occurs in nature as the oxide in the ...