Respiratory Findings in Synthetic Textile Workers

Details

• Personal Author:
  Budak A ; Godnic-Cvar J ; Kern J ; Mustajbegovic J ; Schachter EN ; Zuskin E
• Description:
  A survey of respiratory health in Croatian synthetic fiber textile workers was conducted. The cohort consisted of 400 workers, 308 females, 18 to 61 years old, employed in a synthetic textiles factory at Zagreb, Croatia. The workers had been employed at the facility a mean of 16 years. Forty one percent of the female workers and 45% of males were current smokers. Controls consisted of 806 workers in other industries not exposed to dusts, fumes, or chemicals who were matched to the cohort by age, duration of employment, and smoking habits. Subjects completed a respiratory symptom questionnaire. Spirometric testing was performed. Industrial hygiene monitoring for total and respirable dust at the textile factory was performed. Textile workers reported a higher prevalence of chronic respiratory symptoms than controls. The differences were statistically significant for dyspnea, sinusitis, and nasal catarrh in female workers and nasal catarrh in the male workers. Significant higher prevalences of chronic cough, bronchitis, and phlegm production were reported by smoking than by nonsmoking textile workers. Three female textile workers and one male worker had occupational asthma. None of the controls had asthma. The textile workers reported high prevalences of acute symptoms such as cough, nose and throat dryness, and eye irritation. A high prevalence of workshift related headache was reported by female textile workers. The prevalence of acute symptoms did not depend on smoking status. Forced vital capacity (FVC) and maximum expiratory flow rate at the last 25% of FVC (FEF75) were decreased in the textile workers compared to the controls. The decreases were statistically significant only for FEF75 in female smokers and nonsmokers and FEF75 in male nonsmokers. The mean total and respirable dust concentrations in the textile factory were 12 and 4mg/m3, which exceeded the Croatian standards of 1 and 0.4mg/m3, respectively. The authors conclude that work in synthetic textile factories may cause respiratory impairment. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Dust Epidemiology Health Surveys Lung Occupational Health Respiratory Function Tests Respiratory System Respiratory Tract Diseases Safety Smokers Surveys And Questionnaires Textile Industry Tobacco Products

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• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Synthetic Textile Fibers Cigarette-smoking Clinical-symptoms Dust-exposure Health-survey Industrial-hygiene Lung-function Lung Function NIOSH-Grant NIOSH-Publication Occupational-respiratory-disease Pulmonary-function-tests Pulmonary-system-disorders Respiratory Symptoms Textile-workers

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• ISSN:
  0271-3586
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  New York ; OSHA Region 2
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  263-273
• Volume:
  33
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00240988
• Citation:
  Am J Ind Med 1998 Mar; 33(3):263-273
• Contact Point Address:
  Medicine Mount Sinai Medical Center One Gustave L Levy Place New York, N Y 10029
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1998
• NORA Priority Area:
  Pulmonary System Disorders
• Performing Organization:
  Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  19880701
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Industrial Medicine
• End Date:
  20020331
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:0b2180b6749356c4264c2311c6f39cbcbb6362881978f703c5a9ff8bd9671bf25766c0e408b50625061d87bd7e0cf7d5606244d79046e2dedff6ff11f0fe3cd3
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/198068/cdc_198068_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 52.21 KB ]