[Asbestos-related pleuropulmonary diseases: pictorial essay]. / Alterações pleurais e parenquimatosas relacionadas com a exposição ao asbestos: ensaio pictórico.

Pleural and pulmonary asbestos-related diseases range from benign conditions, like pleural effusion and pleural plaques, to some neoplasias, such as lung cancer and malignant mesothelioma. Pleural effusion is the earliest finding after asbestos exposure, but the imaging findings are not specific. Diffuse pleural thickening involves the visceral pleura and pleural plaques are considered to be hallmarks of exposure. Asbestosis is the pulmonary fibrosis due to asbestos. Rounded atelectasis is a peripheral lung collapse in these individuals, generally related to pleural disease. Some neoplasias, like lung carcinoma and pleural mesothelioma, are more prevalent in asbestos-exposed subjects. The aim of this essay is to illustrate the main imaging findings of asbestos-related diseases.

[Asbestos-related pleural plaques: a literature review]. / Placas pleurais relacionadas ao asbesto: revisão da literatura.

Pleural plaques (PP) are considered to be hallmarks of asbestos exposure. They constitute focal thickenings of the pleura and are commonly seen in patients without lung disease. They can involve parietal, diaphragmatic and mediastinal pleura. Chest x-ray is frequently used for PP diagnosis, but computed tomography, especially when used the high-resolution technique, is the imaging exam with the greatest sensibility and specificity. PP are almost always asymptomatic, but there are some controversial about their relationship with asbestos exposure indexes, pulmonary functional alterations and risk of neoplasias.