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Respiration; International Review of... 2012
Topics: Female; Humans; Male; Pneumoconiosis; Population Surveillance
PubMed: 22699266
DOI: 10.1159/000339419 -
Frontiers in Public Health 2023Pneumoconiosis is the most dangerous occupational disease in China. According to unofficial records, nearly million migrant workers were affected by pneumoconiosis in...
BACKGROUND
Pneumoconiosis is the most dangerous occupational disease in China. According to unofficial records, nearly million migrant workers were affected by pneumoconiosis in 2011, with the number increasing annually. Among them, a large number of migrant workers suffering from pneumoconiosis were not medically diagnosed. Therefore, fundamental questions remain unanswered: what is the background of workers who receive a diagnosis of pneumoconiosis, and how does pneumoconiosis affect their future and well-being?
METHODS
In this study, we identified and surveyed 1,134 workers with pneumoconiosis in seven selected regions in China with substantially high incidences of pneumoconiosis by using a combination of cluster sampling, convenience sampling, and snowball sampling. We used demographic, medical, and rehabilitation conditions and welfare questionnaires to collect the data.
RESULTS
The findings highlighted the socioeconomic status of patients with pneumoconiosis. The majority of workers with pneumoconiosis were adult men who had received no higher education, who lived in rural households, and who were employed in mining or manufacturing industries. Among these workers, 52.8% had been exposed to dust at work for more than 10 years, and 53.1% received a diagnosis of stage II or III pneumoconiosis. More than half of the workers (569 workers, 50.2%) did not receive comprehensive, routine treatment; 33.4% (379 workers) visited a doctor when they experienced physical discomfort, and 6.6% (75 workers) never received treatment. Only 156 workers (13.8%) received rehabilitation services, whereas 978 workers (86.2%) never did. The study results also revealed the severe financial difficulties faced by patients with pneumoconiosis. Only 208 workers (18.3%) had access to work-related injury insurance, with the cost of pneumoconiosis treatment being a substantial burden for 668 workers (60.6%).
CONCLUSION
In this study, we explored the existing health and welfare problems faced by workers with pneumoconiosis in China and identified the social injustice and health disparities that these workers experience. We also clarified the primary challenges in implementing safety, health, and welfare policies for these workers and those who are exposed to high-risk environments, such as those working in mining.
Topics: Adult; Male; Humans; Pneumoconiosis; China; Health Status; Occupational Diseases; Insurance
PubMed: 37719739
DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1142161 -
Environmental Health Perspectives Jun 1988Dust dose and composition do not appear to account wholly for changes in the prevalence of coal workers' pneumoconiosis in Europe. In certain coal pits high progression... (Review)
Review
Dust dose and composition do not appear to account wholly for changes in the prevalence of coal workers' pneumoconiosis in Europe. In certain coal pits high progression evidently occurred with relatively low dust exposure or vice versa, whereas progression in relation to dust levels might be variable. Exceptionally high quartz concentrations occur in coal mine dust when pneumoconiosis may progress with unusual rapidity. Under such circumstances lesions resembling silicotic nodules may be found, but with the customarily lower levels of quartz the pathological features assume the form characteristic of coal workers. Morphological changes in relation to dust content of human and animal lungs, as well as cellular behavior, have not accounted completely for the epidemiological findings. Considering all the pathological evidence helps explain the pathogenesis of pneumoconiosis and vagaries of progression. The origin of progressive massive fibrosis cannot be explained simply in terms of dust burden or immunological features, and the role of an infective factor cannot be dismissed. Moreover, lipid secretion by alveolar epithelium introduces a new element that could affect the development of simple and complicated pneumoconiosis. In vitro, cytotoxicity appeared to be too variable for predictive purposes, though direct assay of fibrogenicity using the macrophage fibrogenic factor suggested that dust dose was more important than dust composition. Assessing individual susceptibility presents serious obstacles.
Topics: Coal Mining; Humans; Male; Pneumoconiosis
PubMed: 3060352
DOI: 10.1289/ehp.8878159 -
Industrial Health Apr 2024This study examined physicians' participation and performance in the examinations administered by the Asian Intensive Reader of Pneumoconiosis (AIR Pneumo) program from...
This study examined physicians' participation and performance in the examinations administered by the Asian Intensive Reader of Pneumoconiosis (AIR Pneumo) program from 2008 to 2020 and compared radiograph readings of physicians who passed with those who failed the examinations. Demography of the participants, participation trends, pass/fail rates, and proficiency scores were summarized; differences in reading the radiographs for pneumoconiosis of physicians who passed the examinations and those who failed were evaluated. By December 2020, 555 physicians from 20 countries had taken certification examinations; the number of participants increased in recent years. Reported background specialty training and work experience varied widely. Passing rate and mean proficiency score for participants who passed were 83.4% and 77.6 ± 9.4 in certification, and 76.8% and 88.1 ± 4.5 in recertification examinations. Compared with physicians who passed the examinations, physicians who failed tended to classify test radiographs as positive for pneumoconiosis and read a higher profusion; they likely missed large opacities and pleural plaques and had a lower accuracy in recognizing the shape of small opacities. Findings suggest that physicians who failed the examination tend to over-diagnose radiographs as positive for pneumoconiosis with higher profusion and have difficulty in correctly identifying small opacity shape.
Topics: Humans; Radiography, Thoracic; Pneumoconiosis; Radiography; Certification; Clinical Competence
PubMed: 37407488
DOI: 10.2486/indhealth.2023-0010 -
International Journal of Environmental... Sep 2022This study aims to determine the occupational health status of workers exposed to dust and the risk factors of lung function decline, to provide a basis for formulating...
OBJECTIVE
This study aims to determine the occupational health status of workers exposed to dust and the risk factors of lung function decline, to provide a basis for formulating corresponding occupational disease-prevention strategies.
METHODS
Data on 2045 workers exposed to dust, including their age, gender, exposure time, chest X-ray test results, and pulmonary function test results, were obtained from a key occupational disease monitoring project in Chongqing, China, in 2021. Chi-square tests and multifactorial logistic regression, and other methods, were used for statistical analysis.
RESULTS
The prevalence of pneumoconiosis-like changes was 0.83% (17/2045), and the prevalence of abnormal forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV), forced vital capacity (FVC), and FEV/FVC was 4.25% (87/2045), 12.81% (262/2045), and 1.47% (30/2045), respectively. With increasing worker's age, the prevalence of abnormal pneumoconiosis-like changes ( = 0.0065), FEV ( = 0.0002), FVC ( < 0.0001), and FEV/FVC ( = 0.0055) all increased. Factors such as age, exposure duration, enterprise size, and dust exposure concentration were associated with abnormal lung function.
CONCLUSIONS
Workers exposed to occupational dust have a high rate of abnormal lung function. The government, enterprises, and individuals should pay attention to occupational dust exposure, and various effective measures should be actively taken to protect the life and health of workers.
Topics: Cross-Sectional Studies; Dust; Forced Expiratory Volume; Humans; Lung; Occupational Diseases; Occupational Exposure; Pneumoconiosis; Vital Capacity
PubMed: 36078779
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph191711065 -
Biochemistry. Biokhimiia Jan 2004Conflicting evidence has been reported as to whether nitric oxide (NO) possesses anti-inflammatory or inflammatory properties. Data are presented indicating that in... (Review)
Review
Conflicting evidence has been reported as to whether nitric oxide (NO) possesses anti-inflammatory or inflammatory properties. Data are presented indicating that in vitro or in vivo exposure to selected occupational dusts, i.e., crystalline silica, organic dust contaminated with endotoxin, or asbestos, results in upregulation of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and the production of NO by alveolar macrophages and pulmonary epithelial cells. Nitric oxide production is associated temporally and anatomically with pulmonary damage, inflammation, and disease progression in response to occupational dusts. Blockage of inducible nitric oxide synthase by administration of NOS inhibitors or in iNOS knockout mice decreases the magnitude of injury and inflammation following in vivo exposure to silica, endotoxin, or asbestos. Therefore, NO may play an important role in the initiation and progression of pneumoconiosis.
Topics: Animals; Disease Progression; Dust; Inflammation; Nitric Oxide; Pneumoconiosis
PubMed: 14972015
DOI: 10.1023/b:biry.0000016348.34175.53 -
Environmental Health Perspectives Aug 2000In recent years the greatest progress in our understanding of pneumoconioses, other than those produced by asbestos, silica, and coal, has been in the arena of... (Review)
Review
In recent years the greatest progress in our understanding of pneumoconioses, other than those produced by asbestos, silica, and coal, has been in the arena of metal-induced parenchymal lung disorders. Inhalation of metal dusts and fumes can induce a wide range of lung pathology, including airways disorders, cancer, and parenchymal diseases. The emphasis of this update is on parenchymal diseases caused by metal inhalation, including granulomatous disease, giant cell interstitial pneumonitis, chemical pneumonitis, and interstitial fibrosis, among others. The clinical characteristics, epidemiology, and pathogenesis of disorders arising from exposure to aluminum, beryllium, cadmium, cobalt, copper, iron, mercury, and nickel are presented in detail. Metal fume fever, an inhalation fever syndrome attributed to exposure to a number of metals, is also discussed. Advances in our knowledge of antigen-specific immunologic reactions in the lung are particularly evident in disorders secondary to beryllium and nickel exposure, where immunologic mechanisms have been well characterized. For example, current evidence suggests that beryllium acts as an antigen, or hapten, and is presented by antigen-presenting cells to CD4+ T cells, which possess specific surface antigen receptors. Other metals such as cadmium and mercury induce nonspecific damage, probably by initiating production of reactive oxygen species. Additionally, genetic susceptibility markers associated with increased risk have been identified in some metal-related diseases such as chronic beryllium disease and hard metal disease. Future research needs include development of biologic markers of metal-induced immunologic disease, detailed characterization of human exposure, examination of gene alleles that might confer risk, and association of exposure data with that of genetic susceptibility.
Topics: Air Pollutants; Dust; Humans; Inhalation Exposure; Inorganic Chemicals; Metals, Heavy; Pneumoconiosis
PubMed: 10931787
DOI: 10.1289/ehp.00108s4685 -
Malawi Medical Journal : the Journal of... Dec 2023Tracheobronchial variations (TBVs) are more common than previously believed due to the increasing use of multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT). This study aimed to...
BACKGROUND
Tracheobronchial variations (TBVs) are more common than previously believed due to the increasing use of multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT). This study aimed to assess TBVs in cases of pneumoconiosis, one of the oldest occupational diseases that still poses a threat to public health.
METHODS
This was a descriptive study that involved reviewing chest MDCT images of 34 cases of pneumoconiosis and 34 control cases retrospectively from January 2020 to April 2022. Variations in the trachea, right main bronchus, left main bronchus, lobar and segmental branches of the cases in the patient and control groups were evaluated according to Boyden's nomenclature.
RESULTS
The frequency of TBV was 32.4% in pneumoconiosis cases. Although the frequency of TBV was higher in the patient group than in the control group, the difference was not statistically significant (p=0.086). Furthermore, there was no significant difference in terms of TBV classification between the patient and control groups (p=0.407). Additionally, the presence of TBV did not affect the distribution of International Labour Organization categories in pneumoconiosis cases (p=0.360).
CONCLUSIONS
Although our study provides initial insights into the occurrence of TBVs in pneumoconiosis cases, further research is needed to clarify the relationship between these variations and the disease.
Topics: Humans; Multidetector Computed Tomography; Retrospective Studies; Pneumoconiosis; Occupational Diseases; Bronchi
PubMed: 38362566
DOI: 10.4314/mmj.v35i4.4 -
Annali Dell'Istituto Superiore Di Sanita 2023A mesothelioma cluster in Biancavilla (Sicily, Italy), drew attention to fluoro-edenite, a fibre classified by International Agency for Research on Cancer as...
BACKGROUND
A mesothelioma cluster in Biancavilla (Sicily, Italy), drew attention to fluoro-edenite, a fibre classified by International Agency for Research on Cancer as carcinogenic to humans. Significant excesses in mortality and morbidity were observed for respiratory diseases and a significant excess of pneumoconiosis hospitalizations was reported.
OBJECTIVE
Aim of this study is to assess the characters of the lung damage in Biancavilla residents hospitalized with pneumoconiosis or asbestosis diagnoses.
METHODOLOGY
Medical records, available radiographs and computed tomography scans were collected. The obtained imaging was reviewed by a panel of three specialists and focused on pleural and parenchymal abnormalities. Cases with an ILO-BIT or ICOERD score equal or greater than 2 were considered positive for a pneumoconiosis-like damage, cases with a score lower than 2 or insufficient quality of imaging were considered inconclusive. If no pneumoconiotic aspects were present the cases were classified as negative.
RESULTS
Out of 38 cases, diagnostic imaging for 25 cases were found. Ten cases out of 25 showed asbestosis-like features, nine subjects were considered negative. In six patients' results were inconclusive.
CONCLUSIONS
Asbestosis-like features were substantiated in Biancavilla residents without known occupational exposure to asbestos. Further studies to estimate population respiratory health are required. Experimental studies on the fibrogenic potential of fluoro-edenite are needed.
Topics: Humans; Sicily; Asbestosis; Asbestos, Amphibole; Italy; Pneumoconiosis; Mesothelioma
PubMed: 37712235
DOI: 10.4415/ANN_23_03_03 -
Biomedical and Environmental Sciences :... Jan 2021Pneumoconiosis, an interstitial lung disease that occurs from breathing in certain kinds of damaging dust particles, is a major occupational disease in China. Patients...
Pneumoconiosis, an interstitial lung disease that occurs from breathing in certain kinds of damaging dust particles, is a major occupational disease in China. Patients diagnosed with occupational pneumoconiosis can avail of free medical treatment, whereas patients without a diagnosis of occupational diseases cannot not claim free medical treatment in most provinces from the government before 2019. This study aimed to analyze the priority of medical facility selection and its influencing factors among patients with pneumoconiosis. A total of 1,037 patients with pneumoconiosis from nine provinces in China were investigated. The health service institutions most frequently selected by the patients were county-level hospitals (37.5%). The main reason for the choice was these hospitals' close distance to the patients' homes (47.3%). The factors for the choice of health care institutions were living in the eastern region ( = 2.91), living in rural areas ( = 2.10), silicosis diagnosis ( = 2.44), employment in private enterprises ( = 2.91), smoking ( = 2.69), and quit smoking ( = 3.98). The diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation therapy of pneumoconiosis should be enhanced in primary medical institutions.
Topics: Adult; Aged; China; Female; Hospitals; Humans; Insurance Coverage; Male; Middle Aged; Patient Acceptance of Health Care; Pneumoconiosis; Rural Population; Silicosis; Smoking
PubMed: 33531111
DOI: 10.3967/bes2021.011