A 55-year-old shipyard worker with 30 years of asbestos exposure presents with progressive dyspnea and dry cough. Chest CT shows bilateral pleural plaques with calcification. Lung biopsy reveals golden-brown fusiform bodies with a beaded appearance coated with iron. These structures are best described as:
- A Ferruginous bodies
- B Hamazaki-Wesenberg bodies
- C Asbestos bodies ✓
- D Schaumann bodies
Correct answer: C. Asbestos bodies
Explanation
Asbestos bodies are the classic finding in asbestos exposure: asbestos fibers coated with proteinaceous iron deposits, giving them a golden-brown, beaded, dumbbell or fusiform appearance on histology. 'Ferruginous body' (option A) is a broader term for any fiber coated with iron (including asbestos). Hamazaki-Wesenberg bodies (option B) are seen in sarcoidosis. Schaumann bodies (option D) are laminated calcium-containing concretions seen in sarcoidosis and berylliosis.
Reference: Robbins and Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease, 10th ed.
High-yield for: NEET PGINI-CETNExTFMGEUSMLEPLABMRCP
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