of employees and reduce occupational respiratory diseases. However, a NISOH sponsored committee remained apprehensive about this standard as an earlier study conducted by NIOSH found that byssinosis diagnoses were brought on by cotton dust levels as low as 0.1 mg/m3 meaning that there is still a risk for the development of byssinosis for cotton dust exposure under the PEL. Today, NIOSH has set a recommended exposure limit (REL) of cotton dust to less than 0.2 mg/m3 for up to a 10-hour workday. Symptoms Symptoms of byssinosis can include: Cough with sputum Dyspnea Breathing difficulties Chest tightness Wheezing Cough Patients can develop these symptoms after a few hours of exposure at minimum. For this reason, patients who develop and report these symptoms, and subsequently byssinosis, are one of the reasons why the term Monday Fever exists. Byssinosis can become chronic in a patient if they are continually exposed to cotton, jute, or yarn dust over time. Byssinosis can be misdiagnosed as COPD, or asthma however the difference in these lung diseases and byssinosis comes from the etiology. Byssinosis can ultimately result in narrowing of the airways, lung scarring and death from infection or respiratory failure. Extended exposure to cotton or jute dust can lead to impaired lung function and further respiratory complications. Patients may require oxygen to assist with breathing and may also have difficulty exercising. Diagnosis It can be difficult to accurately diagnose a patient with byssinosis due to symptoms that are similar to other respiratory diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD), asthma, or bronchitis. Byssinosis can be misdiagnosed as other pneumoconioses therefore a chest x-ray and/or lung function test is needed to accurately diagnose a patient who may have byssinosis. The main distinction of byssinosis from other respiratory diseases comes from the initial exposure. Patients who have byssinosis have typically been exposed to cotton or just dust for an extended period of time and experience symptoms of chest tightness and coughing. Patient history should reveal exposure to cotton, flax, hemp, or jute dust. Measurable change in lung function before and after working shifts is key to diagnosis. Patients with byssinosis show a significant drop in FEV1 over the course of work shift. Chest radiographs show areas of opacity due to fibrosis of the pulmonary parenchyma. Another form of diagnosis is observing patient symptoms throughout their work shift. Patients with byssinosis due to dust inhalation will experience adverse