Estimate of all-cause mortality among workers at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP).

Details

• Personal Author:
  Aldrich T ; Hughes T ; Muldoon S ; Tollerud D
• Description:
  Objective: The authors are conducting an occupational cohort mortality study of workers from the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP) for the time period 1953 to 2003. PGDP's primary function has been to produce enriched uranium for use by commercial reactors. During the late 1990,s, there was a growing public awareness and concern about present and historical environmental, safety and worker health issues at the PGDP. This is the only gaseous diffusion plant in the U.S. that has not undergone a health study; the analysis is unique in that it will assess chemical as well as radiation exposures. The objective of this study is to determine if PGDP workers have a mortality rate that exceeds that of the general population, particularly for cancer. Sample Population: Cohort inclusion criteria require workers to have been employed by PGDP for a minimum of thirty days. To date we have compiled a study population cohort of 6859 PGDP workers for the time period 1953-2003. Vital status will be determined through the national death index (NDI). Methods: The data analysis will include an all-cause life table analysis (LTAS), a job exposure matrix (JEM) and a longitudinal modeling approach for specific cancers of interest. We will provide a model for evaluating worker mortality for relationships with workplace exposures using standardized mortality ratios (SMR's) and risk assessment approaches. SMR's are calculated as the ratio of observed and expected deaths in each of 92 causes of death. Expected deaths are calculated by multiplying the person-years at risk in the cohort stratified by race, gender, and 5-year age and calendar year period by the rates in these cells for the referent population. For our analysis, we will apply U.S. mortality rates as external comparisons. The life table analysis will produce summary estimates of relative risks over the entire cohort experience to provide an overview of mortality patterns in the PGDP cohort. The data analysis will also include a sample job exposure matrix (JEM), along with supplemental tables as a work in progress that will show a summary of exposures to employees in specific job categories. Conclusion: The presentation will provide a modeling strategy for job exposures and life table analysis. This will include a strategy for exposure specific data to include chemical and radiation exposure in a job exposure matrix. The presentation will provide tables and graphics showing an all-cause life table analysis producing SMR's for overall mortality and specific cancers of interest. The observed and expected deaths are summed across all strata. This is done for each of the cause-of-death categories, and the results are printed in a summary table. The summary table will produce confidence intervals for the ratio of total observed to expected deaths. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Environmental Exposure Environmental Health Environmental Pollution Epidemiology Men Morbidity Mortality Neoplasms Occupational Health Radiation Safety Safety Management Uranium Women Workplace

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• Keywords:
  Uranium-compounds; Cancer; Mortality-rates; Mortality-data; Morbidity-rates; Workers; Work-environment; Worker-health; Epidemiology; Statistical-analysis; Humans; Men; Women; Safety-measures; Environmental-health; Environmental-hazards; Radiation-exposure
• Publisher:
  University of Louisville
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary
• Place as Subject:
  Kentucky ; OSHA Region 4
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20040426
• Citation:
  Research Louisville, October, 2006, Louisville, Kentucky. Louisville, KY: University of Louisville, 2007 Oct; :926
• CAS Registry Number:
  Uranium (CAS RN 7440-61-1)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2007
• Performing Organization:
  University of Louisville
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Research Louisville, October, 2006, Louisville, Kentucky
• End Date:
  20090630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:7dc847c09aedf140bc731323e8446b4703641ae07d6ad9e7b7238120dab30b8f7dcaa9b938d34d035f87873a0fe7fec262d5d13dcaf290925445e82b6de3b57d
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/245924/cdc_245924_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 168.02 KB ]