What Are Asbestos Pleural Plaques?

Pleural Plaques Harm the Respiratory System and Can Cause Further Damage

Asbestos exposure has been linked to serious health conditions, including mesothelioma and several different types of cancer. However, asbestos-related illnesses often stay dormant for years. Many people do not realize they have a disease until they begin showing symptoms later in life. While some symptoms indicate respiratory distress, others may appear relatively benign.

Pleural plaques are among the most common early signs of asbestos exposure. While pleural plaques are not always dangerous, they could signal bigger problems.

Understanding Pleural Plaques 

Pleural plaques are one of the most common signs of asbestos exposure. 

The pleura is a thin sheet of tissue that protects the outside of the lungs and lines the inside of the chest cavity. The pleura has two parts: 

• The parietal pleura, which lines the diaphragm and inner chest. Most asbestos-related pleural plaques are found in the parietal pleura. 
• The visceral pleura, which lines the inside of the lungs. Pleural plaques can develop in the visceral pleura, although this is uncommon. 

The two pleurae are composed of a cartilage-like tissue, called hyaline collagen. A healthy pleura should be about as thick as the rubber skin of a balloon. However, people who have been exposed to asbestos often have unusually thickened pleurae, which sometimes take on a mottled grey-and-white coloration. 

These thickened pleurae are called pleural plaques. 

The Symptoms of Pleural Plaques 

Pleural plaques can cause serious health problems, but they are not necessarily dangerous. In fact, most people who have pleural plaques do not experience any adverse or unpleasant symptoms. 

However, pleural plaques can cause “a minimal decrease in lung capacity” and overall respiratory function, but physicians do not believe these differences are clinically significant. In other words, pleural plaques rarely impact an individual’s quality of life.

Pleural Thickening 

Pleural plaques usually do not cause any problems on their own. But some people with a history of asbestos exposure might also experience a thickening of their pleurae and pleural plaques. 

If the pleurae continue to thicken, they could hinder the lungs, preventing them from fully expanding and causing intermittent or regular shortness of breath. 

Who’s At Risk for Pleural Plaques 

The Environmental Protection Agency banned the sale, manufacture, and import of most asbestos materials in the late 1980s. 

However, asbestos was widely used in many different industries before the E.P.A. ban. While people have used asbestos since ancient times, the mining and production of asbestos materials skyrocketed after the late 19^th century. Strong, heat resistant, and an excellent insulator, asbestos was used to create and fortify all types of materials. 

Asbestos Is An Ongoing Problem and Health Danger

Despite the E.P.A.’s ban, asbestos can still be found in older automotive parts, residential wall paint, and asphalt roof shingles. 

Unfortunately, the people who created and worked with these sorts of asbestos-contaminated products often inhaled asbestos dust. Some professions had especially high incidences of asbestos exposure. They include: 

• Military veterans 
• Firefighters 
• Miners 
• Steel mill workers
• Boilermakers 
• Construction workers 
• Shipbuilders
• Textile mill workers 

Treatment for Asbestos Plaques in Lungs 

Most cases of pleural plaques do not require any treatment. 

People who have pleural plaques and no other asbestos-related health conditions can live for decades without symptoms. 

While pleural plaque patients usually have positive health prognoses, they could also be at higher risk for developing other, more serious asbestos-related illnesses, including mesothelioma. 

When to Contact a Doctor about Asbestos-Related Pleural Plaques

Even if you never develop another asbestos-related health condition, you should tell your doctor if you have a confirmed or suspected history of asbestos exposure. While pleural plaques are usually benign, they are associated with other, comparatively dangerous health conditions and disorders. 

People who have diagnosed pleural plaques should always contact their physician if they exhibit medical signs and symptoms including: 

• Shortness of breath 
• Chest pain
• Tightness in the chest 
• Coughing up blood 
• Cracking or wheezing sound when breathing or coughing 

These symptoms could indicate a more serious health problem, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer. 

Asbestos Patients Have Options 

The asbestos industry knew for years that its products had the potential to cause serious health problems. However, asbestos manufacturers actively sought to conceal the mineral’s dangers, sacrificing workers’ well-being to line their own pockets. The asbestos industry only admitted defeat when the evidence became overwhelming. 

While pleural plaques do not usually interfere in patients’ ability to live happy, healthy lives, many people who have pleural plaques develop more serious health conditions such as: 

• Asbestosis 
• Pleural effusion
• Lung fibrosis
• Mesothelioma
• Lung cancer
• Ovarian cancer
• Laryngeal cancer

The costs of treating a serious, asbestos-related disease can seem insurmountable: medical studies have shown that the average per-incident hospitalization cost for malignant pleural mesothelioma ranges between $10,000 and $50,000. These costs can mount quickly. In fact, people who have mesothelioma often end up spending hundreds of thousands of dollars over the course of their treatment. 

If you, or a loved one, have been diagnosed with pleural plaques or another asbestos-related illness, you could be entitled to significant compensation through an asbestos trust, an insurance claim, or personal injury lawsuit.