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Malignant
Atypical Mesothelioma of
the Pleura in a Worker
with Brief Exposure to
Chrysotile Asbestos
1:
Med Lav. 2004 Jul-Aug;95(4):320-4.
Riboldi L, Mensi C,
Giordano S, Canti Z, Chiappino G.
Centro Studi Effetti Biologici
Polveri Inalate, Registro Mesoteliomi Regione Lombardia, Dipartimento di
Medicina del Lavoro, Clinica del Lavoro L. Devoto, Universita degli Studi
di Milano. Luciano.Riboldi@unimi.it
BACKGROUND: The
appearance of malignant mesothelioma in workers exposed to asbestos dusts
even for relatively short periods of time is amply demonstrated in the
literature. The workers however were usually exposed to amphiboles in jobs
well known as involving exposure, that are characterized by high levels of
dusts.
OBJECTIVES: To describe
a clinical case of pleural mesothelioma that occurred in a patient exposed
to chrysotile, in a job (driver) that cannot be directly linked to such
high exposure, and which moreover he only did for a few months.
METHODS: The clinical
history was reconstructed by analyzing the clinical files of the hospital
admittances from May 2002 to August 2003, during which the patient
underwent radiological examinations (chest x-rays, chest and abdomen TC),
cytological examination of the pleural fluid, videothoracoscopic surgery
with histological examination (including immunohistochemical coloration)
of the tissue taken in biopsy. The job history, as well as any possible
non-occupational exposures to asbestos, was examined via a standardised
questionnaire, which the patient himself answered, as used in the Lombardy
Mesothelioma Register, in operation at the "Clinica del Lavoro" in Milan.
RESULTS: Examination of
all clinical files confirmed the diagnosis of malignant pleural
mesothelioma. Analysis of job history was found appropriate for defining
as certain an occupational aetiology due to inhalation of asbestos fibres
which occurred for few months as a truck driver in a chrysotile mine.
*** POSTED
JANUARY 31, 2005 ***
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