BYSSINOSIS

Course overview

FOLLOWING ITS RELATIVELY RECENT BIRTH IN THE 1700S FROM THE PIONEERING WORK OF DR. BERNARDINO RAMAZZINI, OCCUPATIONAL MEDICINE HAS GROWN TO ENCOMPASS AN ARRAY OF RESPIRATORY CONDITIONS. ONE SUCH CONDITION IS BYSSINOSIS, A COLLECTION OF RESPIRATORY SYMPTOMS ELICITED BY EXPOSURE TO RAW NON-SYNTHETIC TEXTILES DURING THEIR MANUFACTURING PROCESS. OVER THE YEARS, BYSSINOSIS HAS BEEN REFERRED TO AS COTTON WORKER'S LUNG, BROWN LUNG DISEASE, MONDAY FEVER, AND MILL FEVER. THIS ACTIVITY REVIEWS THE CAUSE AND PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF BYSSINOSIS AND HIGHLIGHTS THE ROLE OF THE INTERPROFESSIONAL TEAM IN ITS PREVENTION AND MANAGEMENT.