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Preparing for your appointment
By Mayo Clinic staffYou're likely to start by seeing your family doctor for the disorder's most common symptom — shortness of breath. He or she may refer you to a doctor specializing in lung problems (pulmonologist).
What you can do
Before your appointment, you might want to write a list of answers to the following questions:
- What are your symptoms and when did they start?
- Have your symptoms stayed the same or gotten worse?
- What kind of work have you done in your career, starting from a young age through to the present? Be specific.
- Have you been involved in any home-remodeling projects or other building renovations occurring over a long period of time?
- Do you or did you smoke? If so, how much?
- What medications and supplements do you take?
You may want to bring along copies of past chest X-rays, so your doctor can directly compare old X-ray images with those from a current scan.
What to expect from your doctor
During the physical exam, your doctor will use a stethoscope to listen carefully to your lungs. He or she may hear a crackling sound if you have asbestosis.
- Asbestos-related lung diseases. National Heart Lung and Blood Institute. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/asb/asb_all.html. Accessed Oct. 29, 2010.
- Asbestos: Health effects. Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry. http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/asbestos/asbestos/health_effects/. Accessed Oct. 29, 2010.
- The asbestos informer. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. http://www.epa.gov/region4/air/asbestos/inform.htm. Accessed Oct. 29, 2010.
- Cowie RL, et al. Asbestos-related fibrosis of the lungs (asbestosis) and pleura. In:
- Mason RJ, et al. Murray & Nadel's Textbook of Respiratory Medicine. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2010. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/page.do?eid=4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-4710-0..00065-1--s0180&isbn=978-1-4160-4710-0&sid=1075834186&type=bookPage§ionEid=4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-4710-0..00065-1--s0180&uniqId=224557682-3#4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-4710-0..00065-1--s0180. Accessed Oct. 29, 2010.
- Samet JM. Occupational pulmonary disorders. In: Goldman L, et al. Cecil Medicine. 23rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/224557682-4/1075834186/1492/377.html#4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-2805-5..50098-7--cesec20_3900. Accessed Oct. 29, 2010.
- King TE. Asbestosis. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Oct. 29, 2010.
- Clinical screening guidelines for asbestos-related lung disease. Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry. http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/asbestos/site-kit/docs/clinscrguide_32205_lo.pdf. Accessed Nov. 1, 2010.
- DeShazo RD, et al. Asbestosis. In: Bope ET, et al. Conn's Current Therapy 2010. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2009. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/page.do?sid=1077017244&eid=4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-6642-2..00004-1--sc0100&isbn=978-1-4160-6642-2&type=bookPage§ionEid=4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-6642-2..00004-1--s1330&uniqId=224896730-3. Accessed Nov. 1, 2010.
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