Lung US (LUS) a valuable tool in identifying asbestos-exposed subjects who require chest-CT

No specific recommendations exist regarding when and for which asbestos-exposed patients chest CT should be conducted. In the last decades, LUS has proven to be a suitable first line tool to identify pleural and parenchymal disease. <bold>Aim:</bold> evaluate role of LUS in identifying signs of asbestos-related pleural-parenchymal disease in patients with asbestos exposure which may require further radiological investigations. <bold>Methods:</bold> subjects with an history of asbestos exposure were included and evaluated with LUS, 12 anatomic landmarks were sequenced and a score between 0-2 based on LUS impairment was assigned (Fig). US score≥1 even without respiratory symptoms were considered worthy of further investigation with chest CT. <bold>Results:</bold> We enrolled 50 patients. Mean age 67,1±10,6 yrs; 75,5% male, 53,1% had dyspnea. 25 patients had US score≥1 and 18 performed CT (7 refused): 15 (83,3%) had a pathological CT (10 pleural thickening and 5 interstitial lung disease). 6 out of 25 patients with US score<1 had CT performed for other reasons and 5 had a non-pathological CT. The prevalence of pathological CT was significantly higher in subjects with US score≥1 (p=0.003). Lung US showed a sensitivity of 93,7% and a specificity of 62,5% for pleural and parenchymal asbestosis. <bold>Conclusions:</bold> lung-US has shown a high sensitivity to detect pleural and interstitial lung alterations and can help to identify asbestos-exposed patients who need chest-CT.