Document XzOyoJL0BMdYpe17r6L8QK5Mx

- 90 - lung smear.. ?he large majority (29 of 31) of male mesothelioma cases had fibre concentrations equal to or greater than those of a group of routine autopsies with numerous bodies in the lung* . the occupations) data for routine necropsies Indicated that a large majority, of the patients with numerous coated fibres had previous definite or probable exposure to asbestos, in contrast to those with occasional fibres. The author therefore concluded that persons with occasional fibres on analysis have a very small change of developing pleural mesothelioma compared with people having numerous coated fibres in the lung. This study once again pointed to (para-)occupational exposure to asbestos as an important cause for mesothelioma. Pooley (1923) examined 120 cases of pleural mesothe lioma; only in 9 cases could he not find asbestos fibres in the lungs. These data strongly suggest that examination of lung tissue for indications of past exposure (see VII) may provide a more sensitive method of detecting past expo sure than history taking; the given percentage of 10-15% may be an overestimate. There is a general agreement that the risk cjT : ,j>-,0thcl lema is fibre related in the order croc idol 1 tc>emosi te>chryrct i io>nr.t h- ; hy 11 i t, but the magnitude of of the difference between the various types of Mtbestos is not well established. Some authors tried to evaluate the prevalence of mepctheliema cr:*ohg the general population. According to hohlig ct al (1073) ir.esothc)ioma is found in 0.18 to 0.7% of all autopsies. Nurminen (1975) quotes the following data: 0.27% of autopsy cases in Malmb-Swedenj 34 cases in 6 years in a population of 6 million in Pennsylvanie, i.e. about 1 per null ion per year; in England, Scotland and Wales 2.3 cases per million per year; the author calculated the incidence for pleura) mesothelioma in Finland as 1.1 per million per year; there was no clustering related to possible asbestos exposure; the male/fcmale ratio was 1.3; the url>en/rura) ratio 4.4. Sturm (1975) quotes the following data: mosothelionas in 0.5% of autopsies in p.uscl-Switacrland; 1.3% in ch-Sv.'i t r.crl *:iid; 4.4% in Mallc-ZOR} 1.5% in Vi or.na-Austria ; 1.25% in Dresden-DOR. (Scr.e data only re fer to pleural mesothelioma, others to r.v*o- thelicria as such). In tost countries there l.as been an ineuxse in the ; : decades; ewakp;\.d interest ur.ong clinician*., pathologists, epi deniol c ;t a certainly has also contributed to this f n'.oAFe7sss^*-vorthe)es6 it has equivocally established that in sut.ot :*i os cf c'i-'etjs wrkers Die prev%h : boon remarkably higher. Hoin ct nl r. pss t cJ *. prevalence of 3.?i 'li autopsies in the Hamburg area, prob-lly. related to the increase in various j..*- sibilitics of exposure in this city with harbours, shipyards, heavy industry, j ' * ! i j ` | i . *001 0703 prodi irF.n fy Fnpn