Toxicology and Industrial Health

Our medical research library holds 29 studies published in Toxicology and Industrial Health (1985–2025). Each entry links to the study's record on PubMed and, where there is one, to the publisher's page and a free full text. 22 have an abstract, the authors' own summary as PubMed records it: open "Abstract" to read it. For 4 studies PubMed has no abstract for, we give the abstract printed in the article or, where there is none, a summary we wrote from it, each labeled as such.

About the journal

• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Published: 1985 to the present, England
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0748-2337 (print), 1477-0393 (electronic)
• Its record in the NLM Catalog

2020s

• An evaluation of trends for mesothelioma mortality in American women: Addressing the content of a recent Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). M.E. Stevens, B.P. Tuttle, D.W. Brew, et al. 2025;41(1):40-60. Review PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

  Abstract

  Mesothelioma is a fatal disease that has historically been associated with exposure to airborne asbestos. Because occupational asbestos exposures dropped dramatically in the late 1960s and early 1970s, far fewer cases of mesothelioma today are due to these fibers but, instead, are usually a result of the aging process or genetic predisposition. In May of 2022, a Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) was issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) regarding malignant mesothelioma incidence in women from 1999 to 2020. While this MMWR alerted citizens to the continued presence of the disease, after reading this article one might have thought that the CDC was suggesting that the disease was increasing in women due to asbestos exposures (which it is not). In the present analysis, we investigate several factors related to the interpretation of epidemiological data for mesothelioma, including the role of asbestos as a risk factor over time. The authors conducted a review of the scientific community's understanding of mesothelioma incidence and asbestos exposures amongst women, as well as an investigation of the methods and references in the MMWR article. Although various articles have recently discussed the incidence of both peritoneal and pleural mesothelioma in women, it is fortunate that the age-adjusted rates for mesothelioma have remained flat (neither increased nor decreased significantly) in women for the past 50 years. Incredibly few women in the U. S. have had appreciable cumulative exposures to any type of asbestos (chrysotile, amosite, or crocidolite) in the workplace or from the ambient environment, especially since about 1965-1970. In this paper, we highlight six factors that should be considered when evaluating the incidence of mesothelioma amongst American women in the current era. Without sufficient consideration of these factors, improper conclusions have been drawn over the past several years.

• A review of the mesotheliogenic potency of cleavage fragments found in talc. E. Miller, E.M. Beckett, D. Cheatham, et al. 2024;40(7):398-424. Review PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  It has long been recognized that amphibole minerals, such as cleavage fragments of tremolite and anthophyllite, may exist in some talc deposits. We reviewed the current state of the science regarding the factors influencing mesotheliogenic potency of cleavage fragments, with emphasis on those that may co-occur in talc deposits, including dimensional and structural characteristics, animal toxicology, and the most well-studied cohort exposed to talc-associated cleavage fragments. Based on our review, multiple lines of scientific evidence demonstrate that inhaled cleavage fragments associated with talc do not pose a mesothelioma hazard.

• Asbestos exposures associated with the use and handling of drilling mud additives. E. Anderson, M. Holton, J. Ellis, et al. 2024;40(7):366-375. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  This paper summarizes historical asbestos exposure data collected during the handling of short-fiber chrysotile asbestos that was used as an additive to drilling fluid in oil and gas exploration. A total of 1171 industrial hygiene (IH) personal and area air samples were collected and analyzed from more than 20 drilling rigs between 1972 and 1985. The dataset consists of 1097 short-term samples (<240 min) with more than 80% having sample durations less than 30 min. Average airborne fiber concentrations measured during asbestos handling activities ranged from 0.62 f/cc to 3.39 f/cc using phase-contrast microscopy (PCM). An additional 14 samples were considered long-term samples (>240 min) and there were 60 samples with no reported sample duration. Eight-hour time-weighted average (8-h TWA) results, calculated using short-term samples, along with long-term samples greater than 240 min, did not exceed contemporaneous Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) permissible exposure limits (PELs). This analysis fills a data gap in the evaluation of asbestos exposures from the use of drilling mud additives (DMAs) that contained chrysotile asbestos.

• Assessing lifetime occupational chrysotile inhalation exposure, respiratory symptoms, and lung cancer risk among brake maintenance workers in Malaysia. M.Z. Yusof, M. Zahaba, M.S. Mohd Aris, et al. 2024;40(11):596-604. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  This study aimed to estimate workers' occupational lifetime exposure to chrysotile and examine the respiratory symptoms and lung cancer risk. A total of 112 workers were interviewed about their occupational histories. Exposure modeling using information on the determinants of exposure was used to estimate chrysotile emissions. The cumulative lifetime exposure was then assessed for each worker. Respiratory symptoms were obtained using a validated questionnaire. Lung cancer mortality rate was also predicted using a model. Almost all the workers were male and young (mean age = 30 years, SD = 7). The estimated lifetime occupational chrysotile inhalation exposure ranged from 0.0001 to 0.0486 f/mL.years (median = 0.0018 f/mL.years, IQR = 0.486). A high prevalence of cough symptom (11.7%), and low estimated cancer risk (<1%) were reported. In conclusion, the lung cancer risk among our cohort of workers was at a low level because of lower cumulative lifetime occupational chrysotile exposure.

• Airborne concentrations of chrysotile asbestos during operation of industrial crane controls and maintenance of associated arc chutes. M.J. McCoy, R.C. Lewis, F.S. Mowat. 2021;37(3):124-133. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  Some industrial crane control panels were historically equipped with chrysotile-containing arc chutes. Because of the paucity of data regarding potential exposure from such equipment, we used a simulation approach to quantify the release of chrysotile from arc chutes in two functional 1970s-era industrial crane control panels during operation and maintenance. Two experienced operators separately simulated operation of crane controls under load; one of these operators then simulated two arc chute maintenance protocols: sanding (protocol 1) and scraping, sanding, and blowing (protocol 2). The original arc chutes contained approximately 36% chrysotile. Personal breathing zone (PBZ) (n = 8) and area samples (n = 8) were collected and analyzed using phase contrast microscopy (PCM) and transmission electron microscopy. PCM-equivalent (PCME) concentrations were derived, from which 8-h time-weighted averages (TWA) were calculated. During operation, chrysotile was identified in one of the four PBZ samples, equivalent to a PCME concentration of 0.012 f/cm3 (8-h TWA: 0.011 f/cm3). During protocols 1 and 2, chrysotile was identified in all PBZ samples (n = 4); PCME concentrations (and corresponding 8-h TWA) were <0.013 and 0.021 f/cm3 (0.001 and 0.004 f/cm3) and 0.013 and 0.017 f/cm3 (0.003 f/cm3), respectively. Many of the airborne chrysotile fibers had matrix attached, supporting the low exposure potential during this work. These data indicate very low, if any, exposures to chrysotile asbestos during the simulated scenarios. In addition, these data could assist with refining assumptions in exposure reconstruction and inform the state-of-the science on low-level chrysotile exposure.

• The legacy of weapons grade plutonium production: Health status of Hanford complex workers who manage the waste. D. Cherry, E. Friedman, M. Vincent, et al. 2021;37(5):260-269. Review PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  The extent and etiology of health effects in workers who maintain underground storage tanks at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation (Hanford) have been subjects of controversy and concern for several decades. Hanford is a decommissioned nuclear production complex managed by the US Department of Energy in southeast Washington State. This integration-of-evidence review evaluates the relationship between exposure to vapors from mixed chemical and radioactive waste stored in underground storage tanks at Hanford and worker health. Hanford workers' health information was gathered from technical reports, media reports, and published literature, including the systematic search of seven databases. This review describes the health status and health concerns of Hanford tank farm workers based on the integration of the available health effects data from disparate sources. In interviews with external groups, Hanford workers reported both irritant-type symptoms and diseases that they believe are attributable to tank farm vapors. However, the results of this integration-of-evidence review indicated that no pervasive pattern of occupational disease was identified that can be associated with exposure to tank farm vapors. Inhalation exposure to asbestos and beryllium is associated with lung disease from various types of nuclear industry work but not from work on tank farms. This review concluded that while irritant-type symptoms and isolated cases of occupational disease are plausible under certain conditions, the currently available data do not support a pervasive pattern of occupational disease associated with vapor exposure.

• Tremolite-actinolite fiber coatings of sub-nanometer silica-rich particles in lungs from deceased Quebec miners. M. Germine, J.H. Puffer. 2020;36(3):146-152. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  Tremolite-actinolite (TA) fibers from the lungs of deceased former Quebec mine workers were found to be coated with sub-nanometer particles. Qualitative chemical analyses were performed on the particles indicating that they were composed of silicon and oxygen. The crystal lattice structure of all amphibole minerals, including the TA series, is arranged as pairs of linear chains of SiO4 tetrahedra that are linked together to form double chains. Our observations of the TA fibers from miner's lungs, made using a high-resolution transmission electron microscope, indicated that the tetrahedral silica chains were progressively split, forming dispersed sub-nanometer particles. The non-tetrahedral sites were removed at the surface of the TA fibers, presumably by the oxidation process involved in attempted phagocytosis, which also resulted in fragmentation of the tetrahedral chains. It was found that the silicon-rich particles (SRPs) were variable in diameter, consistent with fragments formed from the splitting of the tetrahedral chains. The TA fibers from lungs displayed coatings and linear interior zones of SRP parallel to the planes of longitudinal fiber splitting. The literature on very small nanoparticles is consistent with deep penetration of SRP into cell DNA interiors, oxidative stress, and carcinogenesis.

2010s

• An analysis of workplace exposures to asbestos at three steel mills located in the United States (1972-1982). D. Hollins, A. Burns, K. Unice, et al. 2019;35(11-12):726-737. Historical article PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  The objective is to present historical asbestos airborne concentrations associated with activities involving presumably asbestos-containing materials in steel mills. A total of 138 historical industrial hygiene air samples collected in three US steel mills from 1972 to 1982 were analyzed. The majority of samples were collected during relining of open hearth furnaces, stoves, and blast furnaces by steel mill bricklayers and bricklayer helpers. Over 75% of the samples (n = 106) were collected for 50 min or less, four samples were collected for 227 to 306 min, and sample durations were not reported for the remaining 28 samples. Average airborne fiber concentrations measured during relining activities of open hearth furnaces, stoves, and blast furnaces were 0.21 f/cc, 0.72 f/cc and 0.13 f/cc phase-contrast microscopy (PCM), respectively. Measured airborne fiber concentrations of four time-weighted average (TWA) samples (>227 min) averaged 0.045 f/cc. Estimated 8-h TWAs concentrations averaged 0.34 f/cc for bricklayers and 0.2 f/cc bricklayer helpers. While 8-h TWA concentration estimates for monitored tasks/jobs may often have exceeded current Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Permissible Exposure Limits (PELs), they did not exceed relevant contemporaneous occupational exposure standards. This analysis provides a better understanding of historical airborne asbestos exposures that bricklayers and other tradesmen experienced during furnace and stove work in the US steel mills.

• Man-made mineral fiber effects on the expression of anti-oncogenes P53 and P16 and oncogenes C-JUN and C-FOS in the lung tissue of Wistar rats. Y. Cui, L. Huang, T. Huo, et al. 2019;35(6):431-444. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  Man-made mineral fibers (MMMFs) are substitutes for asbestos. MMMFs are widely used as insulation, but their molecular mechanisms underlying the tumorigenic effects in vivo have been poorly studied. For this reason, this work aimed to explore the properties and carcinogenic molecular mechanisms of MMMFs. The three MMMFs, rock wool (RW), glass fibers (GFs), and ceramic fibers (CFs), were prepared into respirable dust. Particle size, morphology, and chemical composition were analyzed by laser particle analyzer, scanning electron microscope, and X-ray fluorescence spectrometer, respectively. The Wistar rats were administered multiple intratracheal instillations of three MMMFs once a month. Then, several parameters (e.g. body mass, lung mass, and lung histology) were measured at 1, 3, and 6 months. After that, levels of P53, P16, C-JUN, and C-FOS mRNA and protein were measured by quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and Western blotting. This work found that exposure to MMMFs could influence the growth of body mass and increase lung mass. General conditions showed white nodules and irregular atrophy. In addition, MMMFs could lead to inactivation of anti-oncogene P16 and activation of proto-oncogenes (C-JUN and C-FOS) in the mRNA and protein levels, in which GF and CF were more obvious compared with RW. The effect of MMMFs was different, which may be related to the physical and chemical characteristics of different MMMFs. In conclusion, MMMFs (GF and CF) could induce an unbalanced expression of cancer-related genes in the lung tissues of rats. The understanding of the determinants of toxicity and carcinogenicity provides a scientific basis for developing and introducing new safer MMMF products, and the present study provides some useful insights into the carcinogenic mechanism of MMMFs.

• Chest ultrasonography in health surveillance of asbestos-related lung diseases. A. Smargiassi, G. Pasciuto, I. Pedicelli, et al. 2017;33(6):537-546. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  Objectives: Exposure to asbestos fibers can lead to different lung diseases, such as pleural thickening and effusion, asbestosis, mesothelioma, and lung cancer. These diseases are expected to peak in the next few years. The aim of the study was to validate ultrasonography (US) as a diagnostic tool in the management of lung diseases in subjects with a history of occupational exposure to asbestos.

  Methods: Fifty-nine retired male workers previously exposed to asbestos were enrolled in the study. Chest US was performed in all the subjects. The US operator was blinded to earlier performed computed tomography (CT) scan reports and images. The sonographic pathological findings were pleural thickening (with or without calcifications), peripheral lung consolidation, and focal sonographic interstitial syndrome and diffuse pneumogenic sonographic interstitial syndrome (pulmonary asbestosis). Significant US findings were recorded, stored, and subsequently compared with CT scans.

  Results: With some patients falling into more than one category, on CT scan, pleural thickening was reported in 33 cases (56%, 26 with calcifications), focal interstitial peripheral alterations in 23 (39%), asbestosis in 6 (10%), and peripheral lung consolidation in 13 cases (22%). Comparing each pathological condition to CT scan reports, US findings had high levels of sensitivity, specificity, positive, and negative predictive values. US did not prove effective for the detection of central lung nodules or diaphragmatic pleural thickenings. Chest US was considered to be the best technique to detect minimal pleural effusions (six subjects, 10%).

  Conclusions: Chest US might be considered an additional tool to follow up subjects occupationally exposed to asbestos who have already undergone CT scan examination and whose pathology is detectable by US as well.

• Agreement between chest radiography and high-resolution computed tomography in diagnosing dust-related interstitial lung fibrosis. R.R. Tiwari. 2015;31(3):235-8. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  Although it has been suggested that high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) scans can be obtained when plain radiographs are equivocal for the presence of interstitial lung fibrosis (ILF) caused by inhalation of dust, such as silica, asbestos fibres, etc., the specificity of the findings remains in question. The present study was carried out to compare the relative efficacy of chest radiography by conventional method and HRCT in evaluating ILF which included 22 workers exposed to fibrogenic dust, who were subjected to clinical examination, pulmonary function testing, posteroanterior chest radiography and HRCT. In the six subjects who had findings suggestive of ILF on HRCT, four had normal chest x-ray (CXR) while one each has been diagnosed as having tuberculosis and ILF on CXR. The agreement analysis between HRCT and CXR suggests that there was a poor agreement between HRCT and CXR (kappa = 0.34).

  © The Author(s) 2013.

• Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid cellular profile in workers exposed to chrysotile asbestos. F.P. Kokkinis, D. Bouros, K. Hadjistavrou, et al. 2011;27(9):849-56. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  The cellular profile of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) in asbestos-exposed population remains controversial. We, therefore, aimed to investigate BALF in apparently healthy individuals that were exposed in asbestos-related work for a long period of time. Participants were selected among employees of a car brakes and clutches factory that used chrysotile asbestos. Selection criteria were an employment history of ≥ 15 years and the absence of severe respiratory disease. The total number and type of BALF cells, the existence of dust cells, iron-laden macrophages and asbestos bodies were assessed. Thirty-nine workers (25 men), with a mean age of 46.2 ± 4.2 years and a mean employment time of 23.5 ± 4 years, participated. Asbestos bodies were observed in 14 out of 39 (36%) specimens, dust cells in 37 and iron-laden macrophages in all. Those with asbestos bodies had at least 3 times higher probability to have lymphocytosis (lymphocytes > 11%: 64% vs 28%, p = 0.027) and had an increased percentage of iron-laden macrophages compared to those without asbestos bodies (median values: 42% vs 13%, p = 0.08). Smokers (36%) had less lymphocytes compared to non and ex-smokers (median values: 6% vs. 13%, p = 0.002), and iron-laden macrophages count had a positive relation (r = 0.31, p = 0.05) to lymphocyte count. Asbestos-exposed asymptomatic individuals with the presence of asbestos bodies in the BALF are more likely to have lymphocytic alveolitis while concurrent dust exposure and smoking habits hold a significant role.

• Cyto-genotoxicity of amphibole asbestos fibers in cultured human lung epithelial cell line: role of surface iron. R.K. Srivastava, M. Lohani, A.B. Pant, et al. 2010;26(9):575-82. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  The present investigations correlate the potentials of the reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and the cyto-genotoxicity of amphibole asbestos fibers (amosite, crocidolite and tremolite) with their surface iron, under in vitro controlled conditions, using A549 cells (human lung epithelial cell line). The mobilizable surface iron was measured by Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy; the production of ROS was investigated using 2, 7 dichloro-dihydrofluorescein-diacetate (DCFH-DA) dye; for cytotoxicity assessment, the intracellular organelles specific damages were measured, using 3-(4, 5 dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide salt (MTT) assay; and, the genotoxic potential of amphibole fibers was determined by cytokinesis block micronucleus (CBMN) assay. In the study, highest amount of ROS was generated by crocidolite followed by tremolite and minimum with amosite. In MTT assay, the time- and concentration-dependent decrease in percent cell viability was recorded with all the three amphibole fibers, tremolite being most cytotoxic, followed by crocidolite, and then amosite. In genotoxicity assay, an increase in the frequency of micronuclei (MNi) in binucleated (BN) cells was observed, where crocidolite was most genotoxic, followed by tremolite, and amosite the least.The comparison of results depicts a clear trend of cyto-genotoxic potential paralleling the ROS generation, suggesting a definite role of oxidative stress in fiber-induced toxicity. However, amosite contains maximum surface iron (28%), followed by crocidolite (27%), and tremolite carrying least (as contaminant) or no iron, the mobilizable surface iron is maximum in crocidolite followed by amosite and is minimum in tremolite. The mobilizable iron somewhat corresponds with the ROS generation capacity of these fibers. This shows that the surface iron could be mainly responsible for amphibole asbestos-induced ROS toxicity; though it may not be the only factor responsible, other factors like shape and size etc., also play role in amphibole asbestos-induced toxicity.

2000s

• How do you interpret regulations: through science or agency rules?. J.H. Lange. 2002;18(2):107-8. Comment · Letter PubMed · Publisher

  Summary

  This letter to the editor responded to a paper by Wallingford and Snyder (2001). That paper reported that asbestos exposures among workers cleaning up the World Trade Center (WTC) disaster site were below the OSHA permissible exposure limit of 0.1 f/cc as a time-weighted average, and that bulk asbestos samples did not represent a health hazard. In that study, air samples above the limit by phase contrast microscopy (PCM) were reanalyzed by transmission electron microscopy or a modified polarized light microscopy method. Three bulk samples exceeded 1% asbestos, with concentrations between 1 and 3%. The author noted that other studies of the WTC had reported higher exposure levels that were more widely distributed around the site. He argued that regulatory agencies interpret asbestos standards strictly when evaluating private parties but, for themselves, on the basis of economics, practicability and reasonableness, creating two regulatory schemes. He stated that the 1% definition of asbestos-containing material was apparently based on opinion rather than health standards. He also stated that the OSHA standard specifies only PCM, yet a modified PCM method was used at the WTC. He suggested that asbestos contributed to a mixture of exposures likely causing emerging health problems. He concluded that agencies should judge standards from a health-based perspective and adjust methods to current scientific thought.

  PubMed has no abstract for this study, and the article doesn't print one. We wrote this summary from the full article with the help of AI. It is not the authors' wording.

• An assessment of asbestos body formation in extrapulmonary sites: liver and spleen. M.G. Williams, R.F. Dodson, E.W. Dickson, et al. 2001;17(1):1-6. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  Study Objectives: Asbestos bodies (ABs) form as asbestos fibers become coated by a cellular iron- and protein-rich matrix. ABs have been reported in lymph nodes and a few extrapulmonary sites, but no data exist as to their formation outside of the lung. It is not clear whether the AB found in these extrapulmonary areas have been transported as mature structures from the lung or formed at the extrapulmonary site. This study was designed to determine if ABs are produced in extrapulmonary sites. The guinea pig efficiently forms ferruginous bodies in the lung and so it was chosen as a model to test the coating efficiency of amosite asbestos fibers in lung, liver and spleen.

  Design: Sized amosite asbestos (5 mg) was administered either endotracheally into lung (n = 2) or directly into liver (n = 4) and spleen (n = 4) of healthy 10-week-old male guinea pigs. The lung, liver and splenic tissues were removed at 40 and 180 days post inoculation and were examined histologically for the presence of AB via light microscopy. Uncoated fibers isolated from the tissues were characterized by electron microscopy. The coating efficiency was calculated as a ratio of uncoated/coated fibers per organ.

  Results: The coating efficiency ratios of fibers that were collected at 40 days post-injection from the individual sites were: lung - 350:1, liver - 4200:1, and spleen - 220,000:1. At 6 months post-injection the ratios for the individual sites consisted of: lung - 176:1, liver - 11,000:1, and spleen - 1000:1.

  Conclusion: This study indicates that AB can be formed in extrapulmonary sites and that the coating efficiency in the lung is much greater than that within the liver or spleen.

• Asbestos content of omentum and mesentery in nonoccupationally exposed individuals. R.F. Dodson, M.F. O'Sullivan, D.R. Brooks, et al. 2001;17(4):138-43. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  Asbestos fibers in occupationally exposed individuals relocate from the lung to extrapulmonary sites. A mechanism for relocation is via the lymphatic circulation. Indeed, asbestos fibers have been found in lymph nodes as well as pleural plaques. Our laboratory has recently shown that asbestos fibers also reach the mesentery and omentum in the peritoneal area where a small percentage of mesotheliomas occurs in exposed individuals. The present study uses light and analytical transmission electron microscopy for defining the asbestos burden in digested lung, omentum, and mesentery tissues from individuals considered as representing the general population in East Texas. The findings, when compared with previous data from occupationally exposed individuals, indicate extreme contrasts as to the level and types of fiber burden between individuals representing the groups.

• Occupational exposures during the World Trade Center disaster response. K.M. Wallingford, E.M. Snyder. 2001;17(5-10):247-53. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  Upon the request of the New York City Department of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) monitored occupational exposures among emergency response workers during the rescue and recovery activities at the World Trade Center disaster site from September 18 through 4 October 2001. During this period, over 1,200 bulk and air samples were collected to estimate or characterize workers' occupational exposures. Samples were collected and analyzed for asbestos, carbon monoxide (CO), chlorodifluoromethane (Freon 22), diesel exhaust, hydrogen sulfide, inorganic acids, mercury and other metals, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, respirable particulate not otherwise regulated (PNOR), respirable crystalline silica, total PNOR, and volatile organic compounds. Exposures to most of these potential hazards did not exceed NIOSH Recommended Exposure Limits or Occupational Safety and Health Administration Permissible Exposure Limits. However, one torch cutter was overexposed to cadmium and another worker (and possibly three others) was overexposed to CO. The elevated cadmium and CO levels were the result of workers using oxy-acetylene cutting torches and gasoline-powered cutting saws. Recommendations were made to ensure adequate ventilation and worker understanding when using these tools and, where possible, to substitute rechargeable, battery-powered cutting saws for gasoline-powered ones. Toxicology

1990s

• Call for an international ban on asbestos. C. Maltoni. 1999;15(6):529-31. PubMed · Publisher

• Airborne fiber concentrations during splitting open and boxing bags of asbestos. N.A. Esmen, M. Corn. 1998;14(6):843-56. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  Measured airborne concentrations of asbestos are often unavailable to assess different epidemiologic estimates of past personal exposure levels or concentrations near specific operations involving handling asbestos. The purpose of this study was to assess the potential use of a laboratory study in estimating exposure to asbestos in operations that ceased for many years. The asbestos transfer operations were simulated by splitting and boxing 4.5-kg paper bags of chrysotile asbestos in an enclosed chamber ventilated at 28.2 air changes per hour (ACH). Two recirculation fans achieved chamber air mixing. The airborne concentration of asbestos fibers was determined by sampling air through membrane filters at a rate of 10 l/min and by analysing fibers by phase contrast optical microscopy to determine 15-min average airborne concentrations. Samplers were located at four equidistant locations from the operation. Opening a maximum of seven bags in 15 min was associated with an asbestos-in-air concentration of less than 2 x 10(-6) fibers/m3 (f/m3) in splitting open and boxing and less than 0.85 x 10(-6) f/m3 in boxing of pre-split bags. The measured airborne asbestos concentration exhibited a linear trend with the number of bags opened per 15 min. The empirical results were utilised to model fiber concentrations for various ventilation rates. It was concluded that the distribution of the operation within the workday and the ventilation rate are the two most important variables in the determination of the estimated time-weighted average concentration. Splitting open and boxing 32 bags of asbestos over an 8-h period at a rate of 4 bags/h over an 8-h period results in a calculated time-weighted average exposure of about 1 x 10(-6) f/m3 in a work space with 20 ACH and approximately 7 x 10(-6) f/m3 in a work space with 2 ACH. Splitting open and boxing at a rate of 12 bags/h for 2 h and 45 min yielded calculated concentrations less than one-half of the above mentioned values. These results should serve as a useful benchmark for epidemiologists concerned with the magnitude of exposure in historically dusty industrial tasks.

• A case study in avoiding a deadly legacy in developing countries. R.A. Lemen, E. Bingham. 1994;10(1-2):59-87. Review PubMed · Publisher

  Summary

  The authors asked what the history of asbestos in the industrialized world could teach developing countries that were importing asbestos for domestic use. They reviewed asbestos mining, production and uses; the numbers and types of exposed workers and their exposure levels; early knowledge of health effects; animal and epidemiological evidence; risk to workers; and regulation. They described asbestos exports to developing countries, citing reports about Canadian exports to Thailand. One author had surveyed a refugee camp at Phanat Nikhom, Thailand, where workers and refugees building housing from asbestos wallboard and roofing were unaware of the dangers and had no exposure controls or protective gear. The authors reported that asbestos cement products made up 70% of commercial use and that amphiboles made up less than 3% of asbestos in use. They cited an OSHA risk assessment of 6.7 deaths per 1,000 at 0.2 fiber/cc, and 3.4 per 1,000 at the NIOSH recommendation of 0.1 fiber/cc. They argued against regulating chrysotile less strictly than amphiboles. They identified four factors behind the asbestos epidemic: slow action by key policy makers, late use of mechanisms for policy change, fragile support infrastructures, and inadequate surveillance. They contrasted this with the response to vinyl chloride in 1974. They concluded that the lessons learned by the industrialized world could help avert similar experiences in developing countries.

  PubMed has no abstract for this study, and the article doesn't print one. We wrote this summary from the full article with the help of AI. It is not the authors' wording.

• An epidemiological view of asbestos in buildings. J.C. McDonald. 1991;7(5-6):187-93. PubMed · Publisher

  Summary

  This article reviewed the epidemiological evidence on health risks from the use of asbestos in building construction. It focused particularly on developing countries, whose main need was for asbestos-cement products for buildings, water supply and drainage. The author set out the costs and benefits, noting that the benefits could only be confirmed by construction engineers, and drew on published survey data and about a dozen cohort studies. EPA survey data suggested that fibre concentrations inside buildings were extremely low and did not closely reflect whether asbestos-cement materials were present. Demolition of buildings containing friable asbestos could produce outdoor levels up to about 1 f/ml. In the United Kingdom, asbestos-cement pipe had not been shown to contribute significantly to fibres in drinking water. Excess lung cancer risk was roughly proportional to duration multiplied by fibre concentration. It was about 1% per fibre-year in textile processes, compared with about 0.02% in chrysotile mining and friction product manufacture. In an analysis of 42 cohorts reported by 1988, excess mortality among workers exposed to chrysotile only was 1.7% for pneumoconiosis, 1.8% for lung cancer and 0.2% for mesothelioma. For workers whose exposure included amphiboles, the figures were 4.0%, 7.0% and 3.8%. The author concluded that strictly controlled use of chrysotile need entail little or no risk. No such assurance could be given for crocidolite or amosite, and friable products should be avoided.

  PubMed has no abstract for this study, and the article doesn't print one. We wrote this summary from the full article with the help of AI. It is not the authors' wording.

• Asbestos disease at low exposure after long residence time in amphibole miners. G.K. Sluis-Cremer. 1991;7(1-2):89-95. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  Short reports of several studies carried out in South Africa which have a bearing on the health effects of low exposures to asbestos are presented. It is stressed that the findings refer solely to amphibole asbestos. Average fiber exposure of 1 or less or a cumulative exposure of less than 2-5 fibers/ml years is associated with the development of asbestosis increasing in frequency with residence time.

• Asbestos disease-1990-2020: the risks of asbestos risk assessment. I.J. Selikoff. 1991;7(5-6):117-27. Review PubMed · Publisher

  Summary

  This article reviewed the history of asbestos-related disease and the difficulties of asbestos risk assessment. The author traced reports of asbestosis, pleural fibrosis, lung cancer and pleural and peritoneal mesothelioma from 1907 to the 1950s, and risk assessments from 1930 to OSHA's 1988 assessment. He described several constraints: few and poor exposure measurements, duration of employment used as a surrogate, variable exposure in construction and shipbuilding, long latency, changes in exposure over time, unmeasured household and neighbourhood exposures, and interaction with cigarette smoking. He drew on studies including 933 amosite factory workers, in whom less than a month of work doubled lung cancer risk over 35 years of observation. Among 17,800 insulation workers followed from 1967 to 1986, 4,591 deaths were observed against 3,453.8 expected, and 2,295 cancer deaths against 761 expected. After asbestos was removed from insulation materials in 1972-1973, death rates fell for asbestosis, lung cancer and peritoneal mesothelioma, but not significantly for pleural mesothelioma. Lung cancer death rates per 100,000 per year were 11.3 without asbestos or smoking, 58.4 with asbestos alone, 122.6 with smoking alone and 601.6 with both. Projections suggested almost 10,000 excess cancer deaths a year for 30 years. The author reviewed past assurances that asbestos disease would disappear. He concluded that the asbestos disaster resulted from very careful calculations, many of which were wrong.

  PubMed has no abstract for this study, and the article doesn't print one. We wrote this summary from the full article with the help of AI. It is not the authors' wording.

• Asbestos-related disease in employees of a steel mill and a glass bottle manufacturing plant. R.S. Kronenberg, J.L. Levin, R.F. Dodson, et al. 1991;7(1-2):73-9. PubMed · Publisher

• Dangerous and cancer-causing properties of products and chemicals in the oil refining and petrochemical industry: Part V--Asbestos-caused cancers and exposure of workers in the oil refining industry. M.A. Mehlman. 1991;7(1-2):53-71. Historical article PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  In the oil refining and petrochemical industries exposure to cancer-causing asbestos particles, especially during equipment repair and maintenance, is very high. Up to 90% of workers in the oil refining industry had direct and/or indirect contact with asbestos, and more than half of this contact occurred without the use of any kind of precaution, thus these workers are in high risk of developing lung cancer and mesothelioma, both fatal diseases. The hazards include: inadequate health and safety training for both company personnel and workers, failure to inform about the dangers and diseases (cancers) resulting from exposure to asbestos; excessive use of large numbers of untrained and uninformed contract workers; lack of use of protective equipment; and archaeological approaches and responses to repairing asbestos breaks and replacement of asbestos in oil refining facilities. For a better understanding of practices and policies in the oil refining industry, refer to Rachel Scott's Muscle and Blood, in particular the chapter "Oil" (E.P. Dutton, New York, 1974), as well as to an editorial which appeared in the Oil and Gas Journal, April, 1968.

• Mesotheliomas following exposure to asbestos used in railroads: the Italian cases. C. Maltoni, C. Pinto, A. Mobiglia. 1991;7(1-2):1-45. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  The available knowledge on the oncogenic risks of asbestos, the data on the uses of asbestos in railroads, with particular regard to the Italian State Railroads (Ferrovie dello Stato = FS), and the groups at risk due to the exposure to asbestos used in railroads were briefly reviewed. The available data on the pathological effects of such exposure, and in particular on the onset of mesotheliomas among machinists and other railroad workers, were also summarized. Eighty-five cases of mesothelioma (80 pleural, 4 peritoneal, and 1 pericardial), related to the exposure to asbestos used in railroads, observed in various Italian regions, were then reported. Twenty-eight of these cases (among which 27 reported in the Emilia-Romagna Region) were submitted to a detailed study at the Bologna Institute of Oncology. Fifty cases of mesothelioma occurred among FS workers, in particular machinists; 30 cases occurred among machinists of rolling-stock workshops not belonging to the FS; 3 cases occurred among travelling workers of rolling-stock not belonging to the FS; and 2 cases were found in family members (a daughter and a wife) of FS workers. This series of cases, together with similar data from the literature, proves the existence of an actually health risk due to asbestos used in railroads, and indicates its gravity. On the basis of the available data, the following steps are considered necessary: the adoption of preventive measures, the performance of medical oncological surveillance, the promotion of systematic epidemiological investigations, and, finally, more emphasis on basic research, aimed at generating information on the biological events taking place during the incubation period of the tumors, to be used for reducing the effect of exposure, and therefore for contrasting the onset of the disease in those who, having been exposed, although healthy, are potentially at high risk.

• Roentgenographic manifestations and pulmonary function effects of asbestos-induced pleural thickening. L. Rosenstock. 1991;7(1-2):81-7. Review PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  Pleural thickening is the most common roentgenographic manifestation of past asbestos exposure. In addition to pleural thickening serving as a specific market of exposure, discrete (plaques) and diffuse pleural fibrosis are important abnormalities because they have been found to be associated with increased risk for other asbestos-related sequelae and to themselves have an adverse effect on pulmonary function. We review here the results of an evaluation of a cohort of asbestos-exposed workers, plumbers and pipefitters, who were consecutively enrolled in a large cross-sectional prevalence study. Among the 681 male participants, pleural abnormalities were associated with decreased values of forced vital capacity, an effect independent of ILO profusion grade. The risk for pleural disease was unexplained by smoking status. Diffuse pleural thickening was more common and was associated with greater decrements in function than was discrete thickening.

1980s

• A study of asbestos-related disease and disability in federal workers' compensation claims. E.B. Bounds. 1989;5(6):1111-5. PubMed · Publisher

• Assessing the power and quality of epidemiologic studies of asbestos-exposed populations. D.L. Davis, B. Mandula, J.V. Van Ryzin. 1985;1(4):93-110. PubMed · Publisher

  Abstract

  This paper briefly discusses criteria for evaluating epidemiologic studies for risk assessment purposes, using asbestos as an example. Asbestos is one of the few carcinogens for which substantial data exist on exposures to humans. However, there are major difficulties in using these data for conducting risk assessments. In particular, exposure data are often incomplete, and risk assessments usually involve extrapolating from the higher exposures of the occupational environments to the lower levels typically encountered in the nonoccupational environment. The term "asbestos" refers to the fibrous form of several minerals, and levels of exposures to these fibers are not easily assessed. Criteria for evaluating epidemiologic studies used in an Ontario Royal Commission report on asbestos are discussed. The importance of considering the statistical power of studies to detect an excess risk is examined using as examples major cohort studies of asbestos-exposed workers, as summarized in a report by the U.S. National Research Council.

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