Experience with the roentgenodiagnosis of disturbances of respiratory function in coal miners

The paper is concerned with the results of roentgenofunctional investigation of 293 miners, among them there were 63 patients with dust bronchitis and 230 patients with the main types of dust disease (anthracosis, silicosis and anthracosilicosis). Two-stage roentgenopneumopolygraphy (RPPG) with a chess grid and spiral pneumoroentgenography (SPRG) with a spiral grid were employed. Respiratory dysfunction in patients with pneumoconiosis depended on an x-ray and morphological type of fibrosis and stage of disease rather than on its type. The formation of zones of emphysematous inflation in the apical area, in the upper and middle regions of the lungs was revealed, however signs of basal emphysema were ++undetectable. Analysis of RPPG and SPRG findings has shown that unlike pneumoconiosis, dust bronchitis is characterized by earlier development of respiratory dysfunction of more noticeable type, particularly in early signs of disease.