Lung News & Features

The disease, called hard-metal pneumoconiosis or "cobalt lung," usually occurs when people inhale mineral dusts caused by metal grinding, said senior researcher Dr. Kirk Jones, a pathologist with the University of California, San Francisco.

The condition is similar to "popcorn lung," which is seen in workers exposed to the chemical flavoring diacetyl, an ingredient used to produce microwave popcorn, researchers said.

Taylor was told to remove the feather bedding from his home and prescribed steroids, which improved his condition within two days.

Firefighters this month have been battling blazes from one end of California to the other. The whipping winds fanning the flames have helped distribute noxious particles far and wide.

The American Lung Association’s 2019 “State of the Air” report shows that more than 141 million people live in counties with unhealthy air, an increase of 7 million people from the 2018 report.

Confirmed cases of Legionnaires disease linked to a North Carolina state fair now stand at 79, including 55 people hospitalized and one death.

A tuberculosis vaccine commonly used in other parts of the world might reduce a person's risk of developing lung cancer if given early in childhood, a six-decade-long study reports.

People can get a rare type of tuberculosis, called bovine tuberculosis, from deer, according to the CDC.

The number of cases of Legionnaires' disease tied to the North Carolina Mountain State fair has risen to 25, with one death, according to the state division of public health.

Rates among all other racial/ethnic groups were at least 14 times higher than among whites.

Late Wednesday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its tally of such cases to 153, spread across 16 states. These cases have emerged in a relatively short timeframe -- from June 28 through Aug. 20, the agency said in a statement.

The FDA approval sprang from a groundbreaking trial of 107 patients in South Africa who had been diagnosed with XDR-TB. Six months after treatment, 89% of the patients were cured, which is far higher than typical success rates for treatment of this often lethal strain of TB

Another 61 probable cases of the disease have been identified, according to Nancy Nydam, director of communications at Georgia Department of Public Health, CNN reported.

For the year 2015,  the researchers extrapolated that air pollution still caused nearly 16,000 deaths in women and 15,000 in men in the United States.

Each year in the United States, pneumonia sends 1 million adults to the hospital. The new study examined the medical records of 6,500 pneumonia patients treated at 43 Michigan hospitals. Of those, 60% were interviewed by phone within a month after they left the hospital.

Those who had high fitness levels stayed healthier and had longer lives, as well -- up to 1.5 to 2 years longer, the study found.

Legionnaires is caused by the Legionella bacteria, which can grow in water in building cooling systems. It's spread as people inhale contaminated water droplets, according to the CDC.

In the new study, researchers created a way to keep the donor organs in shape for transplant and functioning, and the recipients stable for 36 to 56 hours.

The EPA says it will issue a rule that bans the sale of methylene chloride to consumers, but allows for its continued use in commercial products.

Because of the new restrictions, "we expect that some flavored e-cigarette products will no longer be sold at all," outgoing FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said.

Evidence that hookah smoking has a serious impact on heart rate and blood pressure is mounting, the American Heart Association says.

The researchers genetically modified pothos ivy to remove chloroform and benzene from the air around it.

All stethoscopes examined were significantly contaminated with a large number and extensive variety of bacteria, including some that can cause health care-associated infections, the study found.

Doctors later inserted a tube down his trachea and into his lungs and found a little bit of blood in branches of his lower part of his right lung.

Bacteria thrive in showerheads and water distribution systems. Although most of these bacteria are harmless, some can cause lung infections, according to a new study.