A 52-year-old stone quarry worker has bilateral hilar lymph node calcification arranged in a thin peripheral rim resembling an eggshell. Which exposure most characteristically produces this appearance?
- A Silica ✓
- B Coal dust alone
- C Asbestos
- D Beryllium
Correct answer: A. Silica
Explanation
Eggshell calcification of hilar and mediastinal lymph nodes is a classic feature of silicosis, though it can also be seen in sarcoidosis and after radiotherapy. Asbestos exposure produces pleural plaques and lower zone fibrosis rather than nodal eggshell calcification, coal workers pneumoconiosis shows small nodules without characteristic nodal rimming, and berylliosis mimics sarcoidosis with non-caseating granulomas but is not the classic association examined here.
Reference: Park's Textbook of Preventive and Social Medicine, 27th ed.
High-yield for: NEET PGINI-CETNExTFMGEUSMLEPLABMRCP
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