Document 44boKq0QNLXVeya6jbN9ryQjQ

08/05/2003 TUE 15:32 FAX 312 996 1899 UIC LHS CHICAGO @002 rat exposure to i significant imtion or disease. 1 by Public Health 6-06 and NIH HD a of Health, sd by Cecelia Kane, Imonary laboratory. did-cxpiratory Flow Rev Reap Die 90: I.H., Jr.: Pulmonary Embolization, Amer iethods, Iowa City: : Respiratory Func. B. Saunders Co., S.C.: Histochemical ith Other Cutaneous 146 (June) 1960. osis vs Sarcoidosis, 62. KK.; and Becker, ]Rev. Resp Dh ind Williams, M.H., t Patients With Bii. Arch Intern Med arises directly to continuous pt themselves inditions have 1 effects often ed. Industrial arranging for <ork; (2) by of importance luate sleeping h, Norwegian >64, pp 82-83. Malignancies in Asbestos Workers JAN LIEBEN. MB, HARRISBURG, FA Within recent years and months a con siderable amount of evidence has appeared in the literature which indicates that asbestosis is directly related to the incidence of taken place over the past 30 years. Prior to 1945, coal tars and pitches were com monly used as impregnums in making brake linings, clutch beings, and packing materials: malignant tumors and cancer.1"3 As early as ten years ago a Pennsylvania pathologist reported that he had seen at autopsies many cancer cases in persons who also suffered from asbestosis. The pathol Since 1945, these have been essentially re placed by resins and other materials so that at present only a very small amount of tar and pitch is used in packing materials.' A small amount of crocidolite is still used in ogist is on the staff of a hospital which re making some packings. ceives most of the patients from a nearby town where a large asbestos producing plant is located. The findings of the pathologist have created concern in the asbestos industry and it was felt appropriate for the Pennsyl vania Health Department to review the prob lem. Exposures in the Plant The Study Since asbestosis is a disease which, once established, progresses even after exposure to dust ceases, it was decided not to ask plant management for cases known to them. Instead, the record rooms of six hospitals which draw their patients from the area of The following information was obtained from the files of the health department which has studied environmental exposures of workers in this plant on several occasions in the past 30 years. During this time there has been a tremendous improvement in dust conditions in all operations and dustiness has been held close to or below the present threshold limit. The textile department used chrysotile, primarily, for many years. It was not un common for the milled fiber received by the textile plants to contain 30% or more of fines. The fiber of today is very much cleaner than that received prior to 1950. The use of light oil in the blending department began around 1955. This was helpful in improving conditions and minimizing dust. Prior to 1950 amosite was processed in small quanti ties for making thermal blankets. Although the processing of amosite never exceeded the asbestos plant were checked for cases of asbestosis. Admissions only for the period between 1956 and 1964 were included. Seventy-five hospital records coded as as bestosis were located. Asbestosis was diag nosed in these people on admission, by x-ray, or at autopsy, or asbestosis was men tioned in the differential diagnosis. After obtaining the 75 records, medical, occupational, and smoking histories were obtained for all these former patients. Many were deceased and their survivors had to be contacted. Other data were obtained from plant management. Seven either had not worked at the asbestos plant under study or the diagnosis had been changed. This left 68 asbestos workers who had worked at one time in the above-mentioned textile and friction materials plant. Further study of the records showed that 21 of these not only had evidence of asbestosis but also had suf one card and the operations were at times fered from malignancy. By the time of the intermittent, this operation, was much dustier than from cards processing chrysotile. Crocidolite has never been handled in the textile Table 1.--Number of Cases and Duration of Occupational Asbestos Exposure by Departments department. In the friction products operations ex tensive changes in the formulations have Submitted tor publication June 6, 1966t>accepted July 1. From Division of Occupational Health, Department of Health, Harrisburg, Pa. Reprint requests to Division of Occupational Health, Department of Health, P.O. Box 90, Harrisburg, Pa 17120. Exposure Duration Less than 10 years 10*20 years 20*30 years 30-f- years Textile Department _____ K._____ Friction Textile Unknown and Friotion 10 3a 1 3 11 61 Arch Environ Health--Vol 13, Nov 1966 SCF-FA-5880 PA-262.20 :. ; 1 : ' I , ;j 'E