Potential public health problems of asbestos in Jamaica

Our plain-English summary of Potential public health problems of asbestos in Jamaica, by H.O. Reid, I.A. Kahwa (Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 1995).

The study

• Authors: H.O. Reid, I.A. Kahwa
• Journal: Occupational and Environmental Medicine
• Published: 1995;52(3):214
• Type of article: Letter
• Cited by: 2 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

In plain English

This was a letter to the editor from two University of the West Indies chemists. They asked how widespread unsafe asbestos disposal was in Jamaican industries and whether asbestos had caused illness or death. Four samples linked to a former asbestos cement pipe factory came from the factory site, a nearby dump, a resident's yard and a roadside. They contained crocidolite, not chrysotile. Residents used some of this material as flower pots, house foundations and driveways. Six ceiling tile samples from a Kingston office building contained either amosite or wollastonite, and removal workers resisted wearing dust masks. Boiler insulation at a power plant contained mainly amosite and anthophyllite. Two brake and clutch samples contained chrysotile. Hospital records showed two asbestosis cases, both with a history of occupational asbestos exposure involving thermal insulation. Three of 9200 postmortem reports (1971 to 1994) named mesothelioma as the cause of death, but the deceased people's histories were unclear. The authors said the low mesothelioma figure might reflect diagnostic difficulties, few necropsies, or long latency. They concluded this showed a potentially serious public health problem.

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: Letter to the editor reporting a preliminary survey: x ray diffraction analysis of material samples, workplace observations, and a review of hospital and postmortem records
• Who was studied: Material samples from Jamaica: 4 from a former asbestos cement factory site and the surrounding area, 6 ceiling tiles from a Kingston office building, insulation samples from boilers at a power plant, and 2 brake and clutch samples. Also hospital records and 9200 postmortem reports (1971 to 1994) at the University Hospital of the West Indies
• Exposure: Asbestos materials in Jamaica: asbestos cement pipes from a former factory (operating 1969 to 1985), office ceiling tiles, power plant boiler insulation, and brake and clutch linings. Fibers found were crocidolite, amosite, anthophyllite, tremolite, actinolite and chrysotile; wollastonite was also found
• Main results:
  • The four samples from the factory site, a nearby dump, a resident's yard and a town roadside contained crocidolite, not chrysotile
  • Factory material had been used by residents as flower pots, foundations to dwellings, garbage dumps and driveways
  • Six ceiling tile samples from an office building in Kingston contained either amosite or wollastonite fibres
  • During removal of the ceiling tiles, which generated much dust, workers resisted instructions to wear dust masks
  • Boiler insulation samples at the power plant contained mainly amosite and anthophyllite, with tremolite, crocidolite and actinolite impurities
  • The two brake and clutch lining mix and raw material samples contained chrysotile
  • Hospital records showed two cases of asbestosis in people with a history of occupational asbestos exposure (thermal insulation)
  • Of 9200 postmortem reports (1971 to 1994) at the University Hospital of the West Indies, three cited mesothelioma as the cause of death. The authors gave this as an incidence of about 0.03%, which they described as small compared with figures for some European communities
  • Five additional deaths were suspected to be related to asbestos
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that this study, which they described as the first for the Caribbean, showed a potentially serious public health problem related to asbestos, and that a detailed investigation including man made mineral fibres was in progress
• Limitations the authors state:
  • The histories of the three people whose deaths were attributed to mesothelioma were not clear
  • The low mesothelioma figure could reflect diagnostic difficulties, few necropsies, or too little time having passed given mesothelioma's latency

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