High Prevalence of Silicosis Among Stone Carvers in Brazil

Details

• Personal Author:
  Antão VC ; Kavakama J ; Pinheiro GA ; Terra-Filho M
• Description:
  In the city of Petrópolis, Brazil, artisans carve souvenirs from a variety of silica-containing minerals. The finding of pulmonary massive fibrosis in one of the workers motivated an investigation of the prevalence of silicosis in this group. Between January 2000 and June 2002, a cross-sectional study was performed. We obtained clinical and occupational histories, spirometry, lung volumes, and carbon monoxide diffusion capacity measurements. Chest radiographs and high-resolution computed tomographies (HRCT) were evaluated. Personal air samples were analyzed. Forty-two stone carvers were examined. The prevalence of silicosis was 53.7%. HRCT better characterized silicotic lesions compared to chest radiographs. Early coalescence of small opacities was associated with lung function impairment. The concentration of dust exceeded permissible limits in 91% of the workplaces. Exposure to high levels of silica dust was associated with an increased prevalence of silicosis among stone carvers. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Art Diagnosis Dust Environmental Monitoring Lung Minerals Occupational Health Quartz Radiography Respiratory System Respiratory Tract Diseases Safety Silicon Dioxide Silicosis

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• Keywords:
  Air-sampling Air Sampling Artists Arts-and-crafts Author Keywords: Silicosis Brazil Diagnostic-tests Exposure-levels Exposure-limits HRCT ILO Reading Lung-function Lung Function Pulmonary-system-disorders Quartz-dust Respiratory-system-disorders Silica-dusts Stone-processing Stone-products Stone Carving X-ray-diagnosis

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• ISSN:
  0271-3586
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• 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
• Pages in Document:
  194-201
• Volume:
  45
• Issue:
  2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20025424
• Citation:
  Am J Ind Med 2004 Feb; 45(2):194-201
• Contact Point Address:
  Vinícius Cavalcanti dos Santos Antão, 4008 Cedar Court, Morgantown, WV 26505
• Email:
  vic1@cdc.gov
• CAS Registry Number:
  Calcium carbonate (CAS RN 471-34-1) ; Quartz (SiO2) (CAS RN 14808-60-7) ; Silica (CAS RN 7631-86-9)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2004
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Industrial Medicine
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:52eed4a01ff0e47182dfbf7cf505cd7d35a0ea90b44b4d415238d0753f09654343928531d3464835b327b30278988a3a5a3ba28a8de791590adf5e0a498e41ae
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/196801/cdc_196801_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 185.05 KB ]