Question:medium
Which one of the following is NOT correct regarding Silicosis?
Which one of the following is NOT correct regarding Silicosis?
Show Hint
Silicosis is an upper zone disease; find the one statement that gets this backwards.
Updated On: Jul 7, 2026
- Egg shell calcification is seen on chest X-ray
- It is more marked in the lower zone
- May lead to progressive massive fibrosis
- The disease may progress even after the exposure has ceased
Show Solution
The Correct Option is B
Solution and Explanation
Step 1: Picture what silica dust does to the lung.
Breathing in tiny silica particles over years sets off scarring, mainly near the small airways and the lymph nodes at the lung hilum.
Step 2: Check the X-ray sign first.
The scarred hilar nodes can calcify only at their rim, leaving a thin ring of calcium that looks like an egg shell on the film. This is a genuine and classic finding, so it is correct.
Step 3: Check where the disease is worst.
Because of how the lung clears dust and drains lymph, silica settles more in the upper parts of the lung. Silicosis is an upper zone disease, so calling it more marked in the lower zone reverses the real pattern. This statement is wrong.
Step 4: Check the merging of nodules.
Small silicotic nodules can grow and fuse into big conglomerate lumps, called progressive massive fibrosis. This is a known and correct complication.
Step 5: Check what happens after the worker leaves the job.
Silica stays trapped in the lung and keeps irritating it, so scarring can advance even years after exposure stops. This statement is also correct.
Step 6: Pick the false one.
The only wrong claim is the zone, since silicosis favors the upper zone, not the lower zone.
\[ \boxed{\text{It is more marked in the lower zone}} \]
Breathing in tiny silica particles over years sets off scarring, mainly near the small airways and the lymph nodes at the lung hilum.
Step 2: Check the X-ray sign first.
The scarred hilar nodes can calcify only at their rim, leaving a thin ring of calcium that looks like an egg shell on the film. This is a genuine and classic finding, so it is correct.
Step 3: Check where the disease is worst.
Because of how the lung clears dust and drains lymph, silica settles more in the upper parts of the lung. Silicosis is an upper zone disease, so calling it more marked in the lower zone reverses the real pattern. This statement is wrong.
Step 4: Check the merging of nodules.
Small silicotic nodules can grow and fuse into big conglomerate lumps, called progressive massive fibrosis. This is a known and correct complication.
Step 5: Check what happens after the worker leaves the job.
Silica stays trapped in the lung and keeps irritating it, so scarring can advance even years after exposure stops. This statement is also correct.
Step 6: Pick the false one.
The only wrong claim is the zone, since silicosis favors the upper zone, not the lower zone.
\[ \boxed{\text{It is more marked in the lower zone}} \]
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