Images of the month 1: Cough before the storm: A case of pulmonary alveolar microlithiasis

A 45-year-old woman, referred for assessment of a chronic dry cough, underwent plain chest X-ray which demonstrated innumerable small pulmonary nodules producing a ‘sandstorm’ appearance (Fig [1][1]). She was constitutionally well and not dyspnoeic. The cough had subsided considerably by the