Drywall construction and asbestos exposure

Our plain-English summary of Drywall construction and asbestos exposure, by A. Fischbein, A.N. Rohl, A.M. Langer, et al (American Industrial Hygiene Association Journal, 1979).

The study

• Authors: A. Fischbein, A.N. Rohl, A.M. Langer, I.J. Selikoff
• Journal: American Industrial Hygiene Association Journal
• Published: 1979;40(5):402-7
• Cited by: 22 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher
• In J-M's library: Johns-Manville's company medical library held a copy (J-M no. 002075).

Abstract

The rapid development of the drywall construction trade in the United States is described. It is estimated that some 75,000 U.S. construction workers are currently employed in this trade. The use of a variety of spackle and taping compounds is shown to be associated with significant asbestos exposure; air samples taken in the breathing zone by drywall tapers during sanding of taping compounds show fiber concentrations exceeding, by several times, the maximum level permitted by United States Government regulations. These findings are given together with the result of a clinical field survey of drywall construction workers demonstrating that asbestos disease may be an important health hazard in this trade.

In plain English

This study examined asbestos in drywall taping compounds and the health of the workers using them. The authors analyzed 15 industrial taping and spackling compounds and found asbestos in 13. The asbestos types were chrysotile and tremolite, and one compound contained 10-15% chrysotile and 8-12% tremolite. In air samples from tapers' breathing zones, 7 of 10 pole-sanding samples exceeded the limit then in force, 5 fibers/cm³ longer than 5 μm. The pole-sanding mean was 10.0 fibers/cm³. Dry mixing averaged 47.2 fibers/cm³ in 2 samples. Fibers were also detected in adjacent rooms. Electron microscopy showed many chrysotile fibers too small for standard optical counting. The authors also examined 114 tapers in the New York Metropolitan area. Of 110 workers whose chest X-rays were read for lung-tissue changes, 45 (40.9%) were abnormal. The rate rose from 26% among those 10 years or less from first exposure to 51% among those 20 years or more. Pleural thickening appeared in 9 of 109 workers assessed (8.3%). The authors concluded that their findings suggest asbestos disease is an important hazard in this trade.

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: Combined study: mineral analysis of taping compounds, workplace air sampling during taping work, and a cross-sectional clinical field survey (medical examination and chest X-rays) of drywall tapers
• Who was studied: 114 drywall taping workers employed in the New York Metropolitan area, plus 15 industrial drywall taping and spackling compounds analyzed for minerals
• Exposure: Drywall taping and spackling compounds containing chrysotile and/or tremolite asbestos, during pole sanding, hand sanding, dry mixing and floor sweeping
• Main results:
  • Of 15 industrial drywall taping and spackling compounds analyzed, 13 contained asbestos; three contained two types of asbestos (chrysotile and tremolite)
  • During pole sanding, 7 of 10 air samples exceeded the then-existing threshold limit value of 5 fibers/cm³ longer than 5 μm; the pole-sanding mean was 10.0 fibers/cm³ (range 1.2-19.3) (Table II)
  • Hand sanding (11 samples, mean 5.3 fibers/cm³, range 1.3-16.9) generated fiber concentrations close to or above the threshold limit value
  • Dry mixing of taping compounds generated fiber counts 7-10 times the threshold limit value (mean 47.2 fibers/cm³, range 35.4-59.0, 2 samples)
  • Electron microscopy of air samples taken during sanding showed numerous chrysotile fibers, most shorter than 1 micrometer, which would not be visible by optical microscopy
  • Among the examined tapers, the overall prevalence of abnormal chest X-rays showing lung-tissue (parenchymal) changes was 40.9% (45 of 110 in Table V)
  • Abnormal chest X-rays increased with time since first exposure: 26% among those with 10 years or less, rising to 51% among those with 20 years or longer
  • Pleural thickening was found in 9 of 109 workers assessed for pleural X-ray abnormalities (8.3% in Table VI, given as 8% in the text); 5 of the 9 also had lung-tissue abnormalities, and their mean time since onset of taping was 19.1 years (range 13-22)
  • Of the 114 examined workers, 79 (69%) were smokers, 13 (11%) non-smokers and 22 (19%) ex-smokers; chronic bronchitis was reported by 25 (22%), all heavy smokers
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that drywall taping workers are at risk of asbestos exposure and that their findings suggest asbestos disease is an important hazard in this trade
• Limitations the authors state:
  • The authors state that fiber concentrations measured by the standard optical microscopy method reflect only a small proportion of the fibers actually present, because finer fibers are missed

Topics

The National Library of Medicine indexes this study under subjects our site covers: Asbestosis.

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Asbestos Exposure.

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• Exposure of sheet-metal workers to asbestos during the construction and renovation of commercial buildings in New York City. A case study in social medicine — E. Drucker, D. Nagin, et al. (1987)
• Mesothelioma associated with use of drywall joint compound: a case series and review of literature — J. Dahlgren, T. Peckham (2012)
• Increased mortality in COPD among construction workers exposed to inorganic dust — I.A. Bergdahl, K. Torén, et al. (2004)
• Occupational exposures and risk of esophageal and gastric cardia cancers among male Swedish construction workers — C. Jansson, A.L. Johansson, et al. (2005)
• Airways obstruction among older construction and trade workers at Department of Energy nuclear sites — J.M. Dement, L. Welch, et al. (2010)

Browse more research in American Industrial Hygiene Association Journal, or return to medical research.