Fluorine detection in the lung tissue of a worker with interstitial pulmonary fibrosis and long-term occupational exposure to polytetrafluoroethylene and perfluorooctanoic acid.
Ultrastruct Pathol
; 44(4-6): 496-500, 2020 Nov 20.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-33200662
ABSTRACT
Exposure to polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), a compound used in nonstick cookware coating and a variety of other applications, is known to cause acute lung injury and granulomatous pneumonitis. It is uncertain whether PTFE and compounds used in its manufacture, such as perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), cause chronic lung disease. Here we report a case of interstitial pulmonary fibrosis in a 71-year-old man who died following a brief illness clinically suspected to be acute respiratory distress syndrome. He had a 25-year history of occupational exposure to PTFE and PFOA. At postmortem examination, the lungs demonstrated diffuse alveolar damage (DAD) superimposed on interstitial pulmonary fibrosis. The interstitial fibrosis lacked fibroblast foci and exhibited basilar and subpleural accentuation with focal microscopic honeycombing. Within the fibrotic lung parenchyma were scattered giant cells containing birefringent translucent particles. Scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) were performed. A majority of the birefringent particles demonstrated a prominent peak for fluorine by EDS analysis. This is the first report to document the presence of fluorine, an elemental constituent of PTFE and PFOA, in fibrotic lung tissue. Careful evaluation of other individuals with long-term exposure to PTFE and/or PFOA appears warranted to better elucidate the spectrum of pulmonary disease associated with these compounds.
Key words
Full text:
1
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Polytetrafluoroethylene
/
Pulmonary Fibrosis
/
Spectrometry, X-Ray Emission
/
Caprylates
/
Microscopy, Electron, Scanning
/
Fluorine
/
Fluorocarbons
Type of study:
Diagnostic_studies
Limits:
Aged
/
Humans
/
Male
Language:
En
Journal:
Ultrastruct Pathol
Year:
2020
Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
United States