Asbestos Exposure

[wendig]

On November 17, I did some work in the basement of a 80+ year old apartment building for a couple hours.  When I was done, I noticed a bunch of old asbestos pipe wrap in various stages of decay.

The next day, I woke up with a horrible sore throat, burning lungs and airway, and feeling flu-like with achy muscles.  Felt like I was coming down with the flu or a bad cold.

I'm a 39 year old male, 5-9, 155 lbs, in great health.  Never smoked, and I don't drink, work in banking.  I’m a runner, usually run 25-30 miles per week. I do have allergies.  Ragweed, pollen, cat dander, and even dust produce symptoms such as runny nose, sneezing, watery eyes, etc.  

Two weeks later, I was still not feeling better.  My burning throat, lungs, and airway persisted, and I was still feeling very run-down and achy.  My primary care doc prescribed a Z pack that did not help.  Lung x-ray returned clear, some standard blood work came back ok.  I had not run in 2 weeks.  Had quite a bit of post nasal drip.  Get hoarse when I talk very much.

Concerned about the duration of my illness, and questioning whether it could have been caused by asbestos, I contacted an industrial hygienist who tested the basement and found  airborne asbestos of 2 types: amosite, and chrysotile.  The levels were higher than the test range.

It’s now been over a month.  Body ache is mostly gone, which is good, but my lungs, throat, and airway STILL burn.  Several attempts to resume my running did not go well.  Felt like I had asthma, w/wheezing and difficulty with my breathing. Still have post nasal drip, and for the last week a very runny nose, with a clear, thin liquid.  Chest often feels “tight”.  Still very hoarse and raspy voice.

I’m trying to get in to see a pulmonary specialist.  All are scheduled almost a month out, so frustrated about the wait to get in for an office visit.  

So, what do you think is happening with my health? What should I do / not do?  Thanks!

[jasonll]

A related discussion, asbestos and coughing asthma was started.

[MCMikie]

A related discussion, Asbestos aggrevating allergies? was started.

[cocabee]

A related discussion, Asbestos exposure was started.

[eilig]

Thank you.  Wish I lived closer to Denver, as I'd certainly make a visit.  My best friend's brother is a pulmonologist in Omaha, and I'll be visiting there for the upcoming holiday break.  I've made an appointment to see him next week, and post his findings afterward.

[National Jewish Health]

Your description of your exposure to asbestos suggests that it was fairly intense.  There is no guarantee that you weren't exposed to other irritants or allergens at the same time, resulting in reactive airway dysfunction syndrome (RADS) or occupationally induced asthma.  It is likely that the asbestos was a major irritant and almost certainly remains in your lungs; imbedded in both upper and lower respiratory tissues, but no guarantee that it was the only one.

Asbestos, especially an acute, intense exposure is highly irritating and capable of causing acute inflammation of the airways and the rest of the lung.  The duration of illness following exposures similar to yours may vary from weeks to months to years.  If this is what is going on, you would probably benefit from taking high dose oral steroids in the hope of reducing the acute inflammation and, perhaps, chronic inflammation.

You would do well not to wait for a month to see a pulmonologist.  If you can't see one, you should see your family doctor.  Describe what has happened and, when possible, see the pulmonologist later.

If you live near a major academic medical center, especially one with a strong occupational medicine division, you should consider making an appointment.  The National Jewish Medical and Research Center in Denver, Colorado is one such center.