Libby Amphibole Disease: Pulmonary Function and CT Abnormalities in Vermiculite Miners

Details

• Alternative Title:
  J Occup Environ Med
• Personal Author:
  Miller, Albert ; Szeinuk, Jaime ; Noonan, Curtis W. ; Henschke, Claudia I. ; Pfau, Jean ; Black, Brad ; Yankelevitz, David F. ; Liang, Mingzhu ; Liu, Ying ; Yip, Rowena ; McNew, Tracy ; Linker, Laura ; Flores, Raja
• Description:
  Objective
  
  This article describes radiologic and pulmonary function findings among miners exposed to Libby amphibole. Computed tomography permits the detection of the characteristic thin, lamellar pleural thickening (LPT).
  
  Methods
  
  Individuals who worked at the mine for a minimum of 6 months had chest CT and pulmonary function tests.
  
  Results
  
  Pleural thickening was noted in 223 (87%) of the 256 miners, parenchymal abnormalities in 49 (19%). LPT, found in 151 (68%), was associated with low values of forced vital capacity and diffusion capacity and significantly lower values in all pulmonary function tests when associated with parenchymal abnormalities.
  
  Conclusions
  
  Eighty-seven percent of miners exposed to Libby Amphibole had pleural abnormalities on CT. LPT alone, and more so with parenchymal abnormalities, resulted in decreased pulmonary function. The importance of this easily-missed LPT is demonstrated by its high frequency and significant functional effects.
  
  
• Subjects:
  Article Asbestos Libby Amphibole Pleural Disease Vermiculite Miners
• Source:
  J Occup Environ Med. 60(2):167-173
• Pubmed ID:
  29200190
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC5805586
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Funding:
  P30 CA196521/CA/NCI NIH HHS/United States ; R01 TS000099/TS/ATSDR CDC HHS/United States
• Volume:
  60
• Issue:
  2
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:f934c77adf9f102d418ab5cc3cf1cd5dcd1893a09b9b7863d62ecdd6611fcef4
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/51526/cdc_51526_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 606.58 KB ]