Emphysema in coal workers' pneumoconiosis: contribution by coal and cigarette smoking

Details

• Personal Author:
  Attfield, Michael ; Green FHY ; Schleiff, Patricia L. ; Vallyathan V
• Description:
  These studies were undertaken to determine and differentiate the relationship of age, coal mining tenure, cigarette smoking, and coal workers' pneumoconiosis (CWP) to the type and severity of emphysema found in a group of autopsy cases from southern West Virginia. The study group consisted of 266 coal miners (41 non-smokers) and 75 non-miner controls (14 non-smokers). Whole lung sections prepared systematically were reviewed by two pathologists and emphysema and CWP were classified and graded for severity using a standardized grading schema. The results of these studies showed no correlation between age and emphysema index in non-miner, non-smoker controls (r=0.15), but the non-miner controls who smoked showed a strong correlation to years smoked (r=0.63) and increasing age. In the non-smoking coal miners, emphysema was significantly higher than in controls (p < 0.01). Emphysema index in the coal miners who smoked also showed a significant increase compared to non-miner smokers (p < 0.01). Coal mining tenure also showed a significant relationship with emphysema index for both smokers and non-smokers (p < 0.01). An additive effect of cigarette smoking and coal mining was evident. The most common type of emphysema in non-miner controls who smoked was centriacinar, and in coal miners with and without cigarette smoking exposure, it was focal emphysema associated with the macule, indicating that both cigarette smoking and coal mine dust exposure preferentially affect the centriacinar portion of the lobule. Panacinar emphysema was found only in the smokers. There was a slightly positive relationship between the retained coal dust in the lung and the emphysema index (p = 0.05). The results of these studies indicate that coal dust and cigarette smoking play important roles in the development and severity of emphysema in coal miners. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Age Factors Autopsy Coal Coal Mining Dust Lung Lung Diseases Mining Occupational Health Pathology Respiratory System Respiratory Tract Diseases Safety Smokers Tobacco Products

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• Keywords:
  Acinar-glands Age-factors Airway-resistance Autopsies Cigarette-smoking Coal-dust Coal-miners Coal-workers-pneumoconiosis Lung-burden Lung-disorders Lung-fibrosis Lung-tissue Postmortem-examination Pulmonary-system-disorders Respiratory-system-disorders Smoking

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• ISSN:
  0003-0805
• 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:
  145
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20044919
• Citation:
  Am Rev Respir Dis 1992 Apr; 145(4)(Pt 2)(Meeting Abstracts):A321
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1992
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Part Number:
  2
• Source Full Name:
  American Review of Respiratory Disease
• Supplement:
  Meeting Abstracts
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:53871e7043e1b935e123d10fa6e696d8d73d22f427585166db50a76edbe6c2f12d24933e132f778948fb16de6c437f153dcc5b405343502a209e42ed5695815a
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/200507/cdc_200507_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 79.95 KB ]