Analysis for asbestos in environmental samples

Our plain-English summary of Analysis for asbestos in environmental samples, by G. Everett (Environmental Health Perspectives, 1974).

The study

• Author: G. Everett
• Journal: Environmental Health Perspectives
• Published: 1974;9:181-2
• Cited by: 1 article, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text
• In J-M's library: Johns-Manville's company medical library held a copy (J-M no. 004699).

In plain English

This was a short commentary reporting no new data, not a research study. The author, from the Environmental Protection Agency, discussed problems in measuring asbestos and other fine particles in environmental samples. The author cited Duluth and said Transite pipe use in the United States made a great deal of chrysotile available in water systems. The author said analytical facilities were quite limited and analysts faced a large learning curve, so regular interlaboratory sample exchanges were needed. The author believed preparation techniques that add energy, such as rubout and ultrasonification, increase the number of particles and fibrils counted. The author noted there was no common agreement on what counts as a fiber: some workers used a 3/1 length-to-width ratio, others 5/1 or 10/1. The author was not persuaded that measuring asbestos by weight would add much if medical concern focuses largely on particle size. The author concluded the field was in its infancy and urged quantitative reporting of size, chemistry and mineral type.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: commentary (opinion piece; no original data)
• Exposure: Asbestos and other fine particles in environmental samples, especially water. The commentary discusses the Duluth situation and chrysotile available in water systems because of Transite pipe use.
• Main results:
  • The author's view: sample preparation techniques that add energy (rubout, ultrasonification) increase the number of particles and fibrils counted.
  • The author's view: there is no agreed definition of a fiber. The 3/1 aspect ratio is not universally accepted, and others use 5/1 or 10/1.
  • The author's view: analytical facilities for this work were quite limited.
  • The author's view: analysts from different fields face a large learning curve.
  • The author was not persuaded that mass concentration work would be of much value if the medical significance focuses largely on particle size.
• The authors' conclusion: The author concluded that the analysis of asbestos in environmental samples was in its infancy and was a difficult problem that would take a good deal of time to deal with.

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Browse more research in Environmental Health Perspectives, or return to medical research.