What lung symptoms and X-ray patterns appeared in three retired miners with silicosis?

Details

This descriptive case series presented three patients with silicosis who had worked for an average of 30 years in the mine in the town of Peñarroya-Pueblonuevo. Their clinical features and radiological patterns were very similar.

All three were men born between 1930 and 1935, retired and former smokers. They were seen for grade II–III breathlessness and occasional cough. Examination revealed generalized hypoventilation on both sides of the chest, while laboratory tests were normal.

Respiratory function testing showed reduced oxygen saturation and reduced carbon monoxide diffusing capacity. Chest radiographs showed conglomerates of nodules forming bilateral masses of progressive massive fibrosis, together with mediastinal lymph nodes with calcification predominantly at their periphery—the “eggshell” pattern.