Imaging of Occupational and Environmental Lung Disease

The respiratory tract is continuously exposed to and filters toxins from the home and work environments. Certain occupations and environmental exposures can cause unique injuries to the upper and lower respiratory system. Despite increasing federal regulations in the workplace, occupation-associated lung disease is still a major cause of lung disease and disability and continues to evolve with changes in industry, regulation, and new emerging exposures and toxins. Establishing a diagnosis can be difficult, often due to long latency between exposure and clinical disease, insufficient patient history, and nonspecific or varying imaging appearance. Identifying key imaging features of occupational lung disease along with a multidisciplinary approach can aid in accurate and timely diagnosis. In this review, we will discuss the importance of a comprehensive patient history, multidisciplinary approach to diagnosis, and key imaging features of occupation-related lung injuries. Radiographic and computed tomographic findings will be described and illustrated.