Respiratory medicine
August 27, 2026 · via Europe PMC
Evaluation of radiological lung pattern and disease progression in patients with asbestosis compared to patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.
Romei C, Colligiani L, Cosci B, +8 more, Guglielmi G.
AI summary — for doctors, generated from the abstract only
In a small comparative study, patients with asbestosis showed significantly slower radiological disease progression on quantitative CT than patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, with distinct imaging features distinguishing the two conditions.
What was studied
A comparative study of 17 patients with asbestosis and 17 patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), using quantitative high-resolution CT analysis (CALIPER software) to measure reticulations, ground-glass opacities, and honeycombing at baseline and after a median follow-up of about 35 months in both groups, deriving an interstitial lung disease (ILD) score and its annualized change, alongside qualitative review of distinguishing radiological features.
Key findings
- Patients with asbestosis had significantly slower disease progression than those with IPF, based on the median annualized change in ILD score (0.70%/month vs 2.06%/month, P=.024).
- Subpleural lines, pleural plaques, and pleural thickening were more common in asbestosis.
- Hypertrophic mediastinal fat and honeycombing were more typical of IPF.
Clinical relevance
The findings suggest that quantitative CT analysis can help distinguish the generally slower disease course of asbestosis from the more rapidly progressive course of IPF, and that specific imaging features (pleural findings versus honeycombing and mediastinal fat) may aid in differentiating the two diagnoses, which could be relevant for prognostic counseling and monitoring strategies in patients with occupational asbestos exposure versus suspected IPF.
Who should care
Limitations
This is a small (17 patients per group), observational comparative study using a specific quantitative CT software tool; findings may not generalize to all patients or all imaging platforms, and treatment implications were not addressed in the abstract.
Asbestosis progressed significantly more slowly than idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis on quantitative CT imaging, with distinct pleural versus honeycombing features helping to distinguish the two conditions.
This is an AI-generated summary of the published abstract, not a clinical recommendation. It may not reflect the full text or subsequent updates — verify against the original source before acting on it.
Abstract
Objectives
This study aimed to compare lung patterns and disease progression in asbestosis and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) using qualitative and quantitative high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) analysis.
Methods
HRCT scans were obtained at baseline (T0) and follow-up (T1) in 17 patients with asbestosis and 17 with IPF, after a median follow-up of 35 months (IQR = 3) and 35 months (IQR = 13), respectively. Lung parenchyma was segmented using CALIPER software, which quantifies reticulations (RET), ground-glass opacities (GGO), and honeycombing (HC), providing an interstitial lung disease (ILD) score based on the percentage of affected lung volume. Disease progression was defined as the change in ILD score from T0 to T1, normalized per year (DeltaILD/year). A comparative analysis was performed between the groups. Additionally, qualitative HRCT features at T0 were reviewed to identify distinguishing radiological signs.
Results
Patients with asbestosis showed significantly slower disease progression (median DeltaILD/year = 0.70%/month; IQR = 1.27) compared to IPF (median = 2.06%/month; IQR = 4.80) (p = 0.024). Subpleural lines (both 5 mm from pleura), pleural plaques, and pleural thickening were more common in asbestosis, whereas hypertrophic mediastinal fat and honeycombing predominated in IPF.
Conclusion
Quantitative HRCT analysis with CALIPER effectively demonstrated slower progression in asbestosis compared to IPF. Specific imaging features, including subpleural lines and pleural involvement, distinguished asbestosis, while honeycombing and mediastinal fat hypertrophy were typical of IPF.
DOI
10.1016/j.rmed.2026.109114
PMID
42660370
Research metadata (titles, abstracts, authors, publication dates) is sourced from Europe PMC, which aggregates content from PubMed/MEDLINE, PubMed Central, and other providers under the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM/NCBI). NLM does not claim copyright on abstracts; the original journal publishers or authors may hold rights to the full articles. AI-generated summaries are derived only from the abstract, never the full text, and are always labeled as AI-generated.
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