Farmer's Lung

Excerpt

Farmer's lung is considered a type of hypersensitivity pneumonitis that was initially identified in the 1700s by Italian researcher Bernardino Ramazzini. He examined exposure risks across multiple professions and found that the disease process was most abundantly found in breeders and farmers who were exposed to organic dust. Interest and knowledge of the disease were rekindled in 1932 when a county tuberculosis officer identified 5 cases of acute respiratory failure seemingly caused by moldy hay during the springtime. Hypersensitivity pneumonitis, as we understand it today, encompasses a wide breadth of exposures that may illicit a delayed allergic response, specifically in the smaller airways. Farmers, in particular, are exposed to various agents in the fields of their workplace. These include organic agents, inorganic agents, gasses, methane, pesticides, fertilizers, and more. The syndrome has great variability in symptom severity and presentation due in large part to the variable exposure durations and innumerable offending agents. Spread between people is nonexistent, however, common exposure history can lead to similar disease states.