Cement, Asbestos, And Cement-Asbestos Pneumoconioses: A Comparative Clinical-Roentgenographic Study

Our plain-English summary of Cement, Asbestos, And Cement-Asbestos Pneumoconioses: A Comparative Clinical-Roentgenographic Study, by G. Scansetti, G.C. Coscia, W. Pisani, et al (1975).

The study

• Authors: G. Scansetti, G.C. Coscia, W. Pisani, G.F. Rubino
• Published: Archives Of Environmental Health 30(6):272-275, June (1975)
• Type of article: Journal article
• Our copy: from Johns-Manville's own medical library, J-M no. 002332. The article is still under copyright, so we describe it here rather than post it.

In plain English

This study, from the Institute of Occupational Medicine of the University of Turin, Italy, compared lung disease in three groups of 100 workers each. One group was exposed to cement dust (quarrying marl or making cement), one worked in cement-asbestos factories, and one worked in asbestos textile factories. Workers were matched across groups by age and length of exposure to within 5 years. Mean ages were 54.5 to 55.5 years and mean exposure 18.5 to 21 years. The authors compared physical signs, heart tracings, breathing tests and chest X-rays. Irregular X-ray shadows appeared in about three quarters of the asbestos textile group, two thirds of the cement-asbestos group and one third of the cement group. Pleural calcification appeared in 9% of the asbestos textile group and 7% of the cement-asbestos group. Breathing impairment was mainly restrictive in the two asbestos groups and most severe in the textile group. In the cement group it was mild and mainly obstructive. The authors concluded that cement-asbestos pneumoconiosis is similar to classical asbestosis, though less advanced at an equal duration of exposure.

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: Comparative clinical and X-ray study of three groups of workers, matched by age and duration of exposure
• Who was studied: Three groups of 100 workers each, in Italy (the authors say the Casale area). A cement group was drawn from 133 workers. A cement-asbestos group was drawn from 642 workers in cement-asbestos factories. An asbestos group was drawn from 341 asbestos textile factory workers. Mean age was 54.5 to 55.5 years; mean exposure was 18.5 to 21 years. The study dates are not given.
• Exposure: Cement dust from quarrying marl for natural cements or making natural or artificial cements; asbestos mixed with cement in cement-asbestos factories; asbestos in textile factories. The article does not state which fiber types were used in the factories studied.
• Main results:
  • Irregular X-ray shadows were found in about two thirds of the cement-asbestos group, three quarters of the asbestos textile group, and one third of the cement group
  • Rounded shadows without irregular shadows were not found in the asbestos textile group, but were found in the cement-asbestos group and especially the cement group
  • Calcification of the parietal and diaphragmatic pleura was found in 7% of the cement-asbestos group and 9% of the asbestos textile group; one cement worker had parietal and another had diaphragmatic pleural calcification
  • Pleural friction rub was found only in the asbestos textile group (5% of cases) and the cement-asbestos group (3% of cases)
  • Clubbing of the fingers and cyanosis were more common in the asbestos textile group (10% and 19% of cases) than in the cement group
  • In the cement-asbestos group, cyanosis was present in 12% of cases and clubbing in 3%
  • Symptoms of bronchitis were especially common in the cement-asbestos group (11% of cases), compared with 4% of cases in each of the other two groups
  • The cement group had mild, mainly obstructive impairment of lung function. The asbestos textile group had more severe, mainly restrictive impairment. The cement-asbestos group was similar to the asbestos textile group but less severe.
  • Respiratory or cardiorespiratory insufficiency was found in some of the cement-asbestos group, less often than in the asbestos textile group, and not in the cement group
  • Electrocardiographic signs of right-sided heart impairment were uncommon and did not differ significantly among the three groups
  • The most advanced X-ray pictures and highest degrees of profusion were found in the asbestos textile group
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that cement-asbestos pneumoconiosis is similar to classical asbestosis, though less advanced at an equal duration of exposure. They also concluded that it can be diagnosed as asbestosis and that its incidence is high after long exposure (average 20 years in their series).

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Chest X-Ray, Pleural Calcification, Pneumoconiosis.

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