Sandrini Alessandra, Johnson Anthony R, Thomas Paul S, Yates Deborah H
Department of Thoracic Medicine, St Vincent's Hospital, and Worker's Compensation (Dust Diseases) Board Education and Research Unit, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Respirology. 2006 May;11(3):325-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1440-1843.2006.00852.x.
Asbestos exposure induces generation of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species. Nitric oxide is involved in asbestos-related lung toxicity in vitro and can be measured non-invasively in humans in exhaled breath. The authors hypothesized that fractional exhaled nitric oxide concentration (FENO) would be increased in subjects with asbestos-related lung disorders.
FENO was measured in 56 subjects with asbestos-related disorders (asbestosis: 12; pleural plaques: 32; asbestos-related diffuse pleural thickening: 12) and in 35 normal subjects. The authors also measured exhaled carbon monoxide, another marker of lung inflammation.
Median (25-75 percentile) FENO was increased in subjects with asbestosis (7.9 (6.6-15.7) p.p.b.; P=0.001) and pleural plaques (6.3 (5.3-9) p.p.b.; P=0.03) compared with normal controls (4.6 (3.5-6) p.p.b.). Subjects with DPT had a median FENO of 5.6 p.p.b., similar to controls. No significant differences in exhaled carbon monoxide were observed between controls (1.0+/-0.3 p.p.m.) and subjects with asbestosis (1.3+/-0.3 p.p.m.), pleural plaques (1.2+/-0.3 p.p.m.) or diffuse pleural thickening (1.1+/-0.3 p.p.m.).
FENO is raised in asbestosis consistent with lung inflammation, and also in pleural plaques.
接触石棉会促使活性氧和氮物质的生成。一氧化氮参与了体外与石棉相关的肺部毒性作用，并且可以在人体呼出气体中进行非侵入性测量。作者推测，与石棉相关的肺部疾病患者呼出一氧化氮分数浓度（FENO）会升高。
对56例患有与石棉相关疾病的受试者（石棉肺：12例；胸膜斑：32例；石棉相关弥漫性胸膜增厚：12例）和35例正常受试者测量FENO。作者还测量了呼出一氧化碳，这是另一种肺部炎症标志物。
与正常对照组（4.6（3.5 - 6）ppb）相比，石棉肺患者（7.9（6.6 - 15.7）ppb；P = 0.001）和胸膜斑患者（6.3（5.3 - 9）ppb；P = 0.03）的FENO中位数（第25 - 75百分位数）升高。弥漫性胸膜增厚患者的FENO中位数为5.6 ppb，与对照组相似。对照组（1.0±0.3 ppm）与石棉肺患者（1.3±0.3 ppm）、胸膜斑患者（1.2±0.3 ppm）或弥漫性胸膜增厚患者（1.1±0.3 ppm）之间呼出一氧化碳无显著差异。
石棉肺患者以及胸膜斑患者的FENO升高，这与肺部炎症一致。
