BACKGROUND: Bronchial anthracofibrosis (BAF) is a dark black or brown pigmentation of multiple large bronchi associated with a fibrotic stenosis or obliteration that is incidentally found during a diagnostic bronchoscopy. Some reporters have suggested endobronchial tuberculosis or tuberculous lymphadenitis as a possible cause of BAF. However, some BAF patients do not have any medical history of tuberculosis. The aim of this study was to elucidate the clinical features of simple BAF patients, which were not associated with tuberculosis. METHODS: We reviewed the patients' charts retrospectively and interviewed all BAF patients who were followed up for 1 year or more. Among the 114 BAF patients, 43 patents (38 %) had no associated tuberculosis, cancer and pneumoconiosis. The clinical characteristics, radiological findings and associated pulmonary diseases of these patients were evaluated. RESULTS: Most patients were non-smokers, old aged, housewifes who resided in a farming village. The common respiratory symptoms were dyspnea, cough and hemoptysis. The predominant X-ray findings were a multiple bronchial wall thickening(89%), bronchial narrowing or atelectasis (76%) and a mediastinal lymph node enlargement with/without calcification (78%). Pulmonary function test usually showed mild obstructive ventilatory abnormalities but no patient showed a restrictive ventilatory pattern and the patients were frequently affected with chronic bronchitis(51%), post-obstructive pneumonia(40%) and chronic asthma(4%). CONCLUSION: Because BAF is frequently associated with chronic bronchitis and obstructive pneumonia as well as tuberculosis, a careful clinical evaluation and accurate differential diagnosis is more essential than empirical anti-tuberculous medication.
Diagnosis, Differential ; Pneumoconiosis

China ; Humans ; Pneumoconiosis ; diagnosis

Humans ; Pneumoconiosis ; diagnosis

Diagnosis, Differential ; Humans ; Pneumoconiosis ; diagnosis

Diagnostic Errors ; Humans ; Pneumoconiosis ; diagnosis

Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pneumoconiosis ; diagnosis

The study was carried out on 50 patients with anthracosis treated from from 1stJanuary 2001 to November 31st 2001 at Thanh nhan hospital.anthracosis was the most frequent to be met among the whole occupational dust-related diseases. The patients have been got diseases, essentailly related to the long duration in contact with various dusts or by having histories that easy to be got diverse diseases of respiratory tract. The commonest symptoms in anthracosis are dyspnoea 70%, cough 62%, sputum excretion 40%, modifications or pulmonary and X-rays, eletrocardiogram, especially respiratory function deficiency. Diseases and complications frequently met of anthracosis were bronchitis, pneumonia, cardiac insufficiency, chronic cardiopulmonary diseases, cardio arrhythmia, pulmonary infarction and hemoptysis
Pneumoconiosis ; Occupational Diseases ; Respiratory System ; diagnosis ;

Anesthesia, Intravenous ; Bronchoscopes ; Bronchoscopy ; Humans ; Pneumoconiosis ; diagnosis

OBJECTIVETo investigate the situation and causes of misdiagnosis of pneumoconiosis or silicotuberculosis in China by pooled analysis, and to provide a reference for the clinical diagnosis of pneumoconiosis in China and reduce the misdiagnosis rate.

METHODSA computer search was performed to collect the studies on the misdiagnosis of pneumoconiosis or silicotuberculosis published in China from 1985 to 2013. The obtained data were subjected to pooled analysis to investigate the causes of misdiagnosis and seek the measures for reducing misdiagnosis.

RESULTSFifty-nine studies involving 1178 cases of misdiagnosed pneumoconiosis or silicotuberculosis were collected. There were 13 causes of misdiagnosis, and the most common one was the poor ability of identification due to inadequate experience in reading chest X-ray films (45.93%), followed by neglect of patient's occupational history (44.99%). Other causes of misdiagnosis included complex X-ray findings that are difficult to judge (29.03%), poor quality of chest radiographs (23.09%), and lack of regular health supervision (19.95%).

CONCLUSIONInadequate experience of physicians is the main cause of misdiagnosis of pneumoconiosis or silicotuberculosis. To reduce misdiagnosis of the disease, measures should be taken to enhance the training and evaluation of knowledge and skills of diagnosis and differential diagnosis of pneumoconiosis among physicians.

Diagnostic Errors ; Humans ; Pneumoconiosis ; diagnosis ; Scleroderma, Systemic ; diagnosis