Lead exposure of welders and bystanders in a ship repair yard

Blood samples were collected from 126 long-term ship repair workers and 42 retirees. Lead concentrations were determined by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Three groups with different degrees of lead exposure were identified: (1)59 welders, burners, and combination men (median blood lead, 39 μg/100 ml); (2) 67 painters, laborers, shipfitters, riggers, and other ship repair workers (median blood lead, 26 μg/100 ml); and (3) 42 retired welders, painters, and shipfitters (median blood lead, 23 μg/100 ml). Thirty active ship repair workers, including 28 welders and burners, had blood lead concentrations above the OSHA “action level” of 40 μg/100 ml. Increased levels in several men without direct exposures to lead were apparently caused by “bystander's exposure.” In the retirees, blood lead levels decreased with increasing length of retirement. Thus, after eight or more years, the average level was below 20 μg/100 ml.     

A historical cohort mortality study among shipyard workers in Genoa, Italy

BACKGROUND: A historical cohort mortality study was conducted among 3984 shipyard workers assigned to ship repair, refitting, and construction in the harbor of Genoa, Italy, between 1960 and 1981. These workers were exposed to asbestos fibers, welding fumes and gases, silica dust, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and solvents. METHODS: Workers were classified in 20 different job-titles depending upon the type of activity. Standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) were computed using male residents of the Province of Genoa as the referent population. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: For the whole cohort significantly increased SMRs were detected for all causes, all cancers, liver, larynx, lung, pleural and bladder cancers, respiratory tract diseases, and cirrhosis of the liver. The analysis by job-title showed increased SMRs not only for pleural cancer, but also for lung, laryngeal cancers and respiratory tract diseases in occupations entailing heavy asbestos exposure. Bladder and liver cancers and liver cirrhosis mortality also appeared to be related to occupational exposure.     

Loss of lung function among sheet metal workers: Ten-year study

One hundred and twenty-two sheet metal workers in New England were examined over a 10-year interval for loss of pulmonary function and the development of asbestosis or asbestos-related pleural fibrosis. Regression models using the generalized estimating equation (GEE) approach were created to investigate the relationship between exposure and pulmonary function after adjusting for smoking status, age, height, and asbestos-related x-ray changes. A history of shipyard work was a significant contributor to the loss of forced vital capacity (FVC). Among smokers, loss in forced expiratory volume at 1 sec (FEV₁) also had a significant relationship to prior shipyard work. There was a borderline significant relationship between percentage predicted FEV₁ and cumulative years of asbestos exposure in smokers, as well as years-since-initial-exposure in never-smokers. This study supports previous findings of obstructive airway changes in asbestos-exposed workers and identifies shipboard work as an important predictor of loss in pulmonary function even years after shipyard exposure to asbestos has ceased. Am. J. Ind. Med. 32:460–466, 1997. © 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Pleural plaques and respiratory function

This cross-sectional study was comprised of 202 nonsmoking shipyard workers with varying exposures to asbestos. Their chest X-rays were normal or contained no abnormality other than pleural plaques. They participated in a health examination of workers exposed to asbestos, which comprised a total of 3,904 persons. One hundred and fifteen of the 202 workers had no deviations from normal X-rays, and 87 had pleural plaques but no other finding on their X-rays. Three out of the 115 workers with normal X-rays and 13 of the 87 with pleural plaques had FVCs below the reference limits (p less than 0.005). The workers with plaques had an average of 6.9% lower FVC. Even after stratification for asbestos exposure, men with plaques were found to have lower FVCs than men without plaques. This difference was largest for those with heavy exposure to asbestos.     

Nickel concentrations in plasma and urine of shipyard workers

Nickel concentrations were analyzed by electrothermal atomic absorption spectro-photometry in plasma from workers at a repair shipyard and a construction shipyard. Four groups of workers were studied: (a) 62 welders, (b) 31 painters, (c) 27 riggers/carpenters, and (d) 21 shipfitters/pipefitters. Controls were 15 hospital workers and 28 retirees at the repair shipyard. In the combined groups of all tested workers at the repair shipyard, increased plasma Ni concentrations (>5.2 μg/liter) occurred in 32 of 82 subjects (39%);(p <.05 vs increased plasma Ni concentrations in 13 of 59 workers at the construction shipyard [22%]. and p <.001 vs increased plasma Ni concentrations in 1 of 43 controls [2%]). At both shipyards, plasma Ni concentrations were higher in the groups of painters and shipfitters/pipefitters than in the groups of welders and riggers/carpenters. In random urine specimens from workers at the construction shipyard, Ni concentrations exceeded 5.2μg/liter in 9 of 24 welders [38%]. (p <.01 vs increased urine Ni concentrations in 1 of 15 controls [hospital workers]). The ratios of plasma/urine nickel concentrations were higher in painters (p <.05) and lower in welders (p <.05) than in other workers at the construction shipyard. Increased concentrations of nickel in body fluids of shipyard workers are attributed to exposures to nickel compounds and alloys in the working environment.     

Screening for asbestos-induced diseases in Finland

Screening for asbestos-induced diseases in Finland was carried out in 1990–1992 as a part of the Asbestos Program of the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health. The aim of the present study was to find the workers who had developed an asbestos-induced disease in certain occupations. Examination of active or retired workers included a personal interview on work history and asbestos exposure, and a chest X-ray. The target group for the screening comprised workers under 70 years of age who had worked at least for 10 years in construction, 1 year in a shipyard or in the manufacture of asbestos products. A preliminary questionnaire was sent to 54,409 workers, 18,943 of whom finally participated in the screening examination. The mean age of the workers was 53 years; 95% were employed in construction, 2% in shipyards, and 3% in the asbestos industry. The criteria for a positive screening result were (1) a radiographic finding clearly indicating lung fibrosis (at least ILO category 1/1), (2) a radiographic finding indicating mild lung fibrosis (ILO category I/O) with unilateral or bilateral pleural plaques, (3) marked abnormalities of the visceral pleura (marked adhesions with or without pleural thickening), or (4) bilateral pleural plaques. The positive cases totalled 4,133 (22%) and were sent for further investigation. In addition to the screening, information on the presence of asbestos in the work environment, prevention of asbestos exposure, as well as on the health effects of asbestos exposure and smoking were given to the participating workers. The screening acted as a preliminary survey to prompt further national follow-up of asbestos-induced diseases among the workers who have been exposed to asbestos. This article presents the material, methods, and overall results of the screening. © 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Hand injuries due to high-pressure injection devices for painting in shipyards: circumstances,management, and outcome in twelve patients

BACKGROUND: Injuries due to high-pressure injections are frequently underestimated occupational accidents, which may have disabling outcomes. METHODS: The occupational injuries logbooks of two shipyards were examined. Twelve accidents due to the utilization of high-pressure equipment were reported. Data were obtained by reviewing the employers' logbooks and hospital records. RESULTS: Contaminants were epoxy paint and stucco, paint solvent, hydraulic and industrial oil. In three cases, the palm was injured and the fingers in nine. In 91% of cases, the accident occurred in the last 2 hr of the work shift. Mishandling (n = 9) and rupture of the high-pressure equipment (n = 3) were the causes. Mean time to medical treatment was 42.5 hr (SD 56.0). Ten workers were permanently disabled. CONCLUSIONS: Prompt surgical intervention with debridement and decompression was done in two workers, who healed completely. The ten patients who were not treated immediately eventually experienced a high rate of disability and five of them also suffered amputation.     

Signs of asbestosis and impaired pulmonary function in women who worked in shipyards

Fifteen of 71 women (21.1%) who had worked in shipyards before May, 1961 had radiographic signs of asbestos disease. There were irregular opacities in the lung parenchyma in seven and pleural disease in eight, two of whom had pleural calcifications. The 71 women who volunteered to be studied had a mean age of 61.5 years. Chronic bronchitis was diagnosed in 21%, 71% had dyspnea on climbing two flights of stairs, and 42% had wheezing. These prevalences were 50% higher than in wives of shipyard workers. In 50 white women, mean values for expiratory flow rates, log (FEF25-75) and log (FEF75-85), were decreased for non-, ex- and current smokers as compared to normal nonsmokers. Ex-smokers and current smokers showed the greater effects. Diffusing capacity (DLCOsb) and alveolar volume (ALV) were also reduced in all three smoking categories. Comparison to a reference population without asbestos exposure showed that for current, ex- and nonsmoking subgroups, there were significant reductions in log (FEF25-75), DLCOsb, and ALV for nonsmokers, reductions in FEV1, log (FEV25-75), and log (FEF75-85) in ex-smokers, and reduced ALV in current smokers. These decreases may reflect a locality effect. Further studies are recommended.     

The national sheet metal worker asbestos disease screening program: Radiologic findings

This report presents data gathered from a series of asbestos disease screening examinations of 9,605 United States sheet metal workers who were first employed in the trade at least 20 years before the examination. The overall prevalence of asbestos-related radiographic changes was 31.1%: 18.8% had pleural abnormalities alone, 6.6% had parenchymal abnormalities (International Labour Office (ILO) score of 1/0 or higher) © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.