Silicosis (also known as Grinder's disease and Potter's rot) is a form of occupational lung disease caused by inhalation of crystalline silica dust, which is found in mines and quarries where quartz concentrations are high, and is marked by inflammation and scarring in forms of nodular lesions in the upper lobes of the lungs.

Silicosis is characterized by shortness of breath, fever, and cyanosis (bluish skin). It may often be misdiagnosed as pulmonary edema (fluid in the lungs), pneumonia, or tuberculosis.