Rheumatoid Arthritis in an Asbestos-Exposed Occupational Cohort

Details

• Personal Author:
  Cooper G ; Sullivan, Patricia A.
• Description:
  This study evaluated non-respiratory effects in a cohort of asbestos-exposed vermiculite workers. We followed 1672 white male Libby, Montana, vermiculite miners, millers, and processing workers with amphibole fiber exposure. Using the NIOSH Life Table Analysis System, age-adjusted underlying cause arthritis mortality through 2001 was compared to white men in the U.S. population. Allowing for a 15-year lag, these workers were 9.5 times (95% CI 3.1-23.5) more likely than expected to die with a diagnosis of arthritis (n ¼ 5). After death certificate review to identify any mention of rheumatoid arthritis (n ¼ 12 deaths), multiple cause mortality was evaluated using the Cox proportional hazards model. After controlling for years since hire and pack years, using age at death as the time dimension, the relative hazard ratio (HR) for rheumatoid arthritis was 1.3 (95% CI 0.8-1.9) per 100,000 fibers/cc-years. For duration, the HR was 1.05 (95% CI 0.99-1.12), suggesting a 5% increase in risk of dying with rheumatoid arthritis for each year of employment. The HR for pack-years was 1.017 (95% CI 0.998-1.036). The association with smoking was expected given previous research on rheumatoid arthritis. These findings are consistent with a recently published report of excess rheumatoid arthritis morbidity among a subset of Libby vermiculite workers (Noonan et al., 2006). Taken together, that report and the findings reported here suggest that exposure to asbestos fibers may be associated with at least one systemic autoimmune disease. Disclaimer: This abstract does not necessarily reflect EPA policy. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Age Factors Asbestos Hazardous Substances Inorganic Chemicals Mining Musculoskeletal System Occupational Health Safety Workplace
• Keywords:
  Age-factors Asbestos-industry Asbestos-mining Asbestos-workers Hazardous-materials Milling-industry Mine-workers Osteogenesis Rheumatoid-disorders Statistical-analysis Workplace-studies

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• ISSN:
  0002-9262
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DRDS - Division of Respiratory Disease Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  167
• Issue:
  11
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20034114
• Citation:
  Am J Epidemiol 2008 Jun; 167(11)(Suppl):S117
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2008
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Epidemiology; 41st Annual Meeting Society for Epidemiologic Research Chicago, Illinois, June 24-27, 2008
• Supplement:
  Suppl
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:671db09547b68e146fc1b9e872c5e4da4936b03748d2df0f7d9bf1524d16e7229aa2463231897fefd3032655588d6278f0ac8e909b8f4a1816b334bef7adbb75
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/189480/cdc_189480_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 596.26 KB ]