ArticleOccupational and environmental medicine2017
Pleural abnormalities in the Framingham Heart Study: prevalence and CT image features.
Article in Occupational and environmental medicine, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.
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5 citing papers in PubMed.
- Pleural plaques and interstitial lung abnormalities in AGES-Reykjavik study.ERJ open research · 2026Article
- Possible Role of Chest Ultrasound in the Assessment of Costo-Phrenic Angle Lesions Prior to Medical Thoracoscopy: A Retrospective Pilot Case Series.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- The Framingham Heart Study: Populational CT-based phenotyping in the lungs and mediastinum.European journal of radiology open · 2020Review
- Potential asbestos exposure among patients with primary lung cancer in Japan.Journal of occupational health · 2018Article
- Response to: 'Pleural abnormalities in the Framingham Heart Study: prevalence and CT image features' by ArakiOccupational and environmental medicine · 2018Article
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Abstract
backgroundThe prevalence of pleural abnormalities in the general population is an epidemiologically important index of asbestos exposure, which has not been investigated since a radiography-based study in 1980.
methodsWe examined 2633 chest CT scans (mean 59.2 years, 50% female) from the Framingham Heart Study (FHS) for the presence and image characteristics of pleural plaques and diffuse pleural thickening. Demographics and pulmonary function were stratified by the presence of pleural abnormalities in association with interstitial lung abnormalities.
resultsPleural abnormalities were present in 1.5% (95% CI 1.1% to 2.1%). Pleural lesions were most commonly bilateral (90.0%), multiple (77.5%), calcified (97.5%) and commonly involved posterior (lower: 92.5%, middle: 87.5%), anterior (upper: 77.5%, middle: 77.5%) and diaphragmatic areas (72.5%). Participants with pleural abnormalities were significantly older (75.7 years, p <0.0001), male (92.5%, p <0.0001), former or current smokers (80.0%, p <0.001) with higher pack-years (33.3, p <0.0001). No significant reduction was noted in pulmonary function measures (p=0.07-0.94) when adjusted for the associated covariates, likely due to small number of cases with pleural abnormalities. Information about prior history of asbestos exposure and occupation was not available.
conclusionsPleural plaques and diffuse pleural thickening are present on CT in 1.5% of the FHS cohort. The current prevalence of the pleural abnormalities is smaller than that reported in the previous population-based study using chest radiography, likely representing lower asbestos exposure in recent decades. The posterior portion of the pleura is most frequently involved but the anterior portion is also commonly involved.
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