ASBESTOS BODIES IN ROUTINE NECROPSIES ON TYNESIDE - A PATHOLOGICAL AND SOCIAL STUDY

Smears were prepared from the base of the right lung in 311 routine necropsies of patients over 15 years of age. Asbestos bodies were found in 20.3% of cases (25.5% of 196 males and 11.3% of 115 females). The majority of smears contained scanty bodies, but in 17 cases they were numerous. In cases with positive smears histological sections failed to reveal asbestos bodies in over 50%. Histological evidence of minimal asbestosis was found in 10 cases. There were no cases of classical asbestosis. The series includes one case of mesothelioma of pleura. There was no significant excess of positive smears in patients dying from gastrointestinal or lung carcinoma. The incidence was higher in patients living in urban areas (25.6%) than in those from rural areas (3.5%). Twenty-nine patients definitely or probably were exposed to asbestos dust at work and two further patients had non-occupational exposure. Neighbourhood contamination with asbestos dust is probably not important in this series. When compared with a series of 23 cases of mesothelioma of pleura or peritoneum, 21 (91%) of which showed asbestos bodies in histological sections of lung, the greater incidence of asbestos bodies in the cases of mesothelioma is statistically highly significant. © 1968, British Medical Journal Publishing Group. All rights reserved.