Bagassosis

Bagassosis, an interstitial lung disease, is a type of hypersensitivity pneumonitis attributed to exposure to moldy molasses (bagasse).
Signs and symptoms.
Some symptoms and signs of Bagassosis include breathlessness, cough, haemoptysis, slight fever. Acute diffuse bronchiolitis may also occur. An xray may show mottling of lungs or a shadow.
Cause.
Bagassosis has been shown to be due to a thermophilic actinomycetes for which the name thermoactinomycetes sacchari was suggested.
Prevention.
The following are precautionary measures that can be taken to avoid the spread of bagassosis:
History.
Bagassosis was first reported in India by Ganguly and Pal in 1955, in a cardboard manufacturing plant near Kolkata. India has a large cane sugar industry. The sugarcane fibre which, until recently, went to waste, is now utilised in the manufacture of cardboard, paper and rayon.