Radiologic-pathologic correlations of small nodules in pneumoconiosis

Radiologic-pathologic correlations were studied using an autopsied lung from a coal miner who had pneumoconiosis. The lung was inflated and fixed by Heitzman's standard method, then its serial-sliced specimens were radiographed by soft X-ray and pathologically studied. Two types of small nodular shadows were recognized in the soft X-ray image and they could also be distinguished by computed tomography. One type was considered as peribronchiolar fibrosis with dust deposits and was characterized by faint nodular shadows having the centriacinar distribution. The second type was considered as fibrotic nodules and was characterized by well-defined and dense nodular shadows having irregular distribution. It was considered useful to analyze the characteristics of small nodules by examining their distribution in the lobular structures in order to make an accurate image diagnosis of pneumoconiosis. (author)