Dust levels in an asbestos-cement factory: problem solving

Our plain-English summary of Dust levels in an asbestos-cement factory: problem solving, by A. Sharon (American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 1986).

The study

• Author: A. Sharon
• Journal: American Journal of Industrial Medicine
• Published: 1986;10(5-6):533-7
• Cited by: 2 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Abstract

Isasbest Ltd., an asbestos-cement factory in Israel, has established dust-preventive measures, maintained high ecological and medical standards, and assisted afflicted workers suffering from asbestos-related diseases. The problems of the handling of asbestos and its relationship to health should be approached according to the conditions in each specific workplace so that reasonable solutions can be found for proper control.

In plain English

This was a descriptive report on Isasbest Ltd., an asbestos-cement pipe and sheet factory in Nahariya, Israel, written by the company's general manager. The plant employed approximately 340 workers, and its products averaged 90% cement and 10% asbestos. The article did not name the asbestos fiber types. The author described the plant's dust controls, including a mainly wet production process. Israeli regulations from 1984 limited the 8-hour average exposure for all types of asbestos to 1 fiber per cubic centimeter. The company's yearly average dust level fell from 1.29 fibers per milliliter in 1977 to 0.14 in 1984, when 682 samples were taken at 122 work stations. Asbestosis cases had been detected by the end of 1978. Among approximately 3,000 former and present workers, about 50 cases of asbestos-related disease were reported, mostly asbestosis in the lower grades of the ILO classification. The author concluded that through full cooperation it was possible to reduce dust levels to a minimum, so that asbestos-cement products could continue to be used without significant damage to workers and the community.

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: Descriptive report on one company's dust control, dust measurements, medical examinations and worker compensation arrangements, written by the company's general manager; not a formal epidemiological study
• Who was studied: Workers at Isasbest Ltd., an asbestos-cement pipe and sheet factory in Nahariya, Israel: approximately 340 currently employed; Table II lists 2,431 former employees; about 3,000 former and present workers in total
• Exposure: Asbestos dust from asbestos-cement manufacturing (products average 90% cement, 10% asbestos); fiber types not named; airborne levels measured in fibers per cc
• Main results:
  • Production was described as conducted mainly by a wet process, with direct exposure possible at two work stations (fiber pouring into the mixer, and product cutting and turning)
  • Israel's 1984 regulations limited the permissible 8-hour weighted average exposure for all types of asbestos to 1 fiber per cc of air
  • In 1984, the company tested dust levels at 122 work stations, collecting 682 samples
  • The plant's yearly average dust level (f/ml) was, by year: 1.29 (1977), 1.16 (1978), 0.44 (1979), 0.285 (1980), 0.23 (1981), 0.17 (1982), 0.21 (1983), 0.14 (1984)
  • By the end of 1978, a number of asbestosis cases had been detected at the plant's medical clinic
  • Among approximately 3,000 former and present workers, about 50 cases of asbestos-related disease were reported, mostly asbestosis in the lower grades of the ILO classification
  • The author stated that low dust concentrations in recent years had thus far been associated with absence of evidence of adverse health effects
• The authors' conclusion: The author concluded that through full cooperation of institutions, physicians, workers and management it is possible to reduce dust levels to a minimum, sharply diminishing risk, so that asbestos-cement products may continue to be used without significant damage to workers and the community

Topics

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

Related studies

• Lung function among asbestos cement factory workers: cross-sectional and longitudinal study — A. Siracusa, C. Cicioni, et al. (1984)
• Epidemiology study of the use of asbestos-cement pipe for the distribution of drinking water in Escambia County, Florida — J.R. Millette, G.F. Craun, et al. (1983)
• Clinical problem-solving. Red snapper or crab? — P.B. Cornia, B.A. Lipsky, et al. (2004)
• Adverse health effects of asbestos: solving mysteries regarding asbestos carcinogenicity based on follow-up survey of a Chinese factory — E. Yano (2018)
• Mortality of workers in a French asbestos cement factory 1940-82 — A.M. Alies-Patin, A.J. Valleron (1985)
• Asbestos Air Pollution: Description of a Mesothelioma Cluster Due to Residential Exposure from an Asbestos Cement Factory — L. Vimercati, D. Cavone, et al. (2020)

Browse more research in American Journal of Industrial Medicine, or return to medical research.