Increased suicide risk among workers following toxic metal exposure at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant from 1952 to 2003: a cohort study

Details

• Personal Author:
  Brion GM ; Figgs LW ; Freitas SJ ; Holsinger H ; Hornung, Richard W. ; Rice CH ; Tollerud D
• Description:
  Background: Suicide is a problem worldwide and occupation is an important risk factor. In the last decade, 55 200 deaths in the US were attributed to occupational risk factors. Objective: To determine if toxic metal exposure was associated with suicide risk among Paducah gaseous diffusion plant (PGDP) workers. Methods: We assembled a cohort of 6 820 nuclear industry workers employed from 1952 to 2003. A job-specific exposure matrix (JEM) was used to determine metal exposure likelihood. Uranium exposure was also assessed by urinalysis. All suicide/self-injury International Classification for Disease (ICD) codes were used to identify suicides. Standardized mortality ratios (SMR), odds ratios (OR), and hazard ratios (HR) were used to estimate suicide risk. Results: PGDP suicide victims typically were younger white men. Within exposure likelihood categories, several suicide SMRs were typically elevated for several metals. Only beryllium exposure likelihood was associated with an increased HR. Uranium urine concentration was associated with an elevated suicide risk after stratification by urinalysis frequency. Conclusion: Suicide risk is associated with uranium exposure. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Environmental Monitoring Epidemiology Hazardous Substances Men Morbidity Mortality Occupational Health Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Suicide Uranium Urine Women

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• Keywords:
  Atomic Energy Author Keywords: Toxic Environmental Toxic Substances Exposure-assessment Exposure-levels Exposure-limits Exposure Assessment Gaseous Diffusion Humans Injuries JEM Morbidity-rates Mortality-data Mortality-rates Proportional Hazard Risk-factors Toxic-materials Uranium-compounds Urinalysis Workers

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• ISSN:
  2008-6520
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Kentucky ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 4 ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  199-214
• Volume:
  2
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20040406
• Citation:
  Int J Occup Environ Med 2011 Oct; 2(4):199-214
• Contact Point Address:
  Larry W. Figgs, PhD, MPH, REHS/RS, Department of Preventive Medicine and Environmental Health, College of Public Health, University of Kentucky, 121 Washington Ave, Lexington, KY 40536-0003
• Email:
  larry.figgs@uky.edu
• CAS Registry Number:
  Beryllium (CAS RN 7440-41-7) ; Uranium (CAS RN 7440-61-1)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2012
• Performing Organization:
  University of Louisville
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
• End Date:
  20090630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:4ecad9e91f835f30a78bd00554a7f7379a301375ed7d7e96b4d3d2c2dc879afde65223a5a788ce0c3e94b3def7884fc18ccfd531b4c80f08248ba0eff5a0dcfa
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/193290/cdc_193290_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.07 MB ]