Asbestos Symptoms

Asbestos are tiny durable fibers that are resistant to chemicals, fire, and heat, which made asbestos use ideal in several different commercial and residential dwellings dating back as far as the 1800’s. It wasn’t until the late 1970’s when the U.S. consumer Product Safety Commission banned asbestos for use in wallboard, gas fireplaces, and many other diverse areas of manufacturing including electric hairdryers stating that severe asbestos symptoms were documented when occupants or users were exposed to damaged materials made from asbestos.

It is estimated that over 1.3 million people were and still continue to be exposed to asbestos resulting in asbestos exposure that lead to serious health issues. Other exposure occurred from working to remove asbestos from factories, homes, schools, and other buildings where asbestos was used. Anybody exposed to asbestos used in the last 60 years are at high risk for developing symptoms.

A person may not even know they had exposure until years or even decades later when asbestos symptoms appear. The most deadly disease to appear up to fifty years after exposure is malignant mesothelioma. With this disease, the diagnosis is very difficult to reach once asbestos symptoms appear due to exposure being hard to pinpoint. There are several conditions that can be related to asbestos exposure included the following and their symptoms.

Asbestos Symptoms

1) Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD is one of the leading causes of symptoms.

Symptoms include:
• Shortness of breath
• Chest pains
• Persistent cough
• Trouble breathing
• Unable to perform physical exertions

2) Malignant mesothelioma is more common in people over the age of sixty and occurs primarily in the chest.

Symptoms include:
• Shortness of breath
• Chest pain
• Feel of tightness in the chest
• Persistence cough
• Sudden weight loss
• Constant fatigue

3) Pleural effusions is a common symptoms associated with mesothelioma.

Symptoms include:
• Build up of excess fluid between the lungs and chest wall
• Chest pain
• Difficulty breathing

4) Peritoneal mesothelioma usually associated with the abdomen and the thickening of the peritoneal tissue.

Symptoms include:
• Swelling
• Weight loss
• Nauseas
• Anemia
• Night sweats
• Fever
• Obstructed bowels

5) There is no cure for asbestos exposure and the conditions that result from its exposure. Doctors do recommend several treatments that can help relieve symptoms.

• Treatments with inhalers and supplement oxygen and antibiotics
• Prescription cough medications
• Pulmonary rehab

6) There are surgical procedures that help patients battle more extreme cases could include:

• Lung transplant is a last resort and only have a one-year survival rate
• Pleural effusion may be treated by non-invasive surgeries such as throacentesis and pleurodesis

7) Changing of the patient’s lifestyle can also help reduce asbestos symptoms:

• Quitting smoking
• In advanced conditions, the patient may need to limit daily physical activities
• Adjustments to a healthier diet
• Herbal supplements such as slippery elm bark are natural treatments for a persistent cough
• Astragalus is a Chinese remedy for treating respiratory problems naturally

At one time or another, everyone has been exposed to asbestos during their lifetime. Exposure can be at the lowest levels such as air water and soil exposure to the highest exposure from work related job that exposed the person on a daily basis for years.

As the government continues to regulate work sites and removal of asbestos, the risk of new exposure and asbestos symptoms have dramatically dropped.