Pneumoconiosis

Abstract

The International Labor Organization (ILO) 1980 international classification of radiographs of pneumoconioses is used widely throughout the world [1]. It has long been recognized that exposure due to radiography of the chest has a marked influence on the radiographic appearance of lesions of pneumoconiosis. Consequently, in radiographs showing evidence of pneumoconiosis, readers have difficulty in applying the ILO classification in the diagnosis of the disease unless the exposure when making the radiographs is maintained within an optimum range. There are some problems with the ILO standard films: These selected films have various types of tonal conversion, inadequate optimum density, the effect of a characteristic curve of image-intensifying screens, and faults such as unevenness in processing. These ILO standard radiographs for pneumoconiosis do not then always have a standardized film quality, even though there was general consensus about them.