Overview
Introduction
Coal workers' pneumoconiosis (CWP), often called black lung disease, develops after inhalation of respirable coal mine dust.
Coal workers' pneumoconiosis (CWP), often called black lung disease, develops after inhalation of respirable coal-mine dust. The bedside pattern is an exposure history plus upper-lobe radiographic change: simple CWP may remain quiet, whereas progressive massive fibrosis (PMF) replaces functional lung and drives hypoxaemia. For an RPN, the high-value work is to connect exposure, symptoms, oxygenation, and test results, then escalate changes rather than treating the label as a diagnosis.