Radiographic Changes in Colombian Asbestos Factory Workers

Our plain-English summary of Radiographic Changes in Colombian Asbestos Factory Workers, by A.L. Frank, G. Villamizar, J.G. Bustillo Pereira (Annals of Global Health, 2020).

The study

• Authors: A.L. Frank, G. Villamizar, J.G. Bustillo Pereira
• Journal: Annals of Global Health
• Published: 2020;86(1):3
• Cited by: 2 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

Abstract

Background: Until recently, Colombia has been a country actively using asbestos. A major factory in Bogota manufactures friction products.

Objective: To determine if the use of chrysotile asbestos in a friction products facility leads to workers developing disease.

Methods: One hundred forty-eight factory workers, former workers, or retirees volunteered for X-ray and pulmonary function testing after informed consent. X-rays were read by two readers who needed to agree on positive findings.

Results: Nineteen of the 148 X-rays had changes consistent with the known prior exposure to asbestos, mostly parenchymal in nature. Pulmonary function was not altered in most of the studied population.

Conclusion: Asbestos disease is clearly present among Colombian asbestos factory workers, as is seen in other exposed populations around the world.

Copyright: © 2020 The Author(s).

In plain English

This study examined workers from a Colombian factory that used chrysotile asbestos to make automotive friction products. From a plant of about 500 active workers, 148 production workers, former workers and retirees volunteered for chest X-rays and lung function tests. Two of the authors read the X-rays, and both had to agree for a film to count as positive. Nineteen of the 148 X-rays showed changes the authors judged consistent with prior asbestos exposure, mostly in the lung tissue itself (parenchymal). Eleven were read as 1/0 and five as 1/1; the other three showed plaques, one of them also read as 1/0. No lung cancers or mesotheliomas were found among those examined. Most workers with changes had developed them within 20 years of first exposure. Lung function was normal in most of those tested, and where it was altered the authors usually attributed this to smoking. The authors concluded that asbestos disease is clearly present among these Colombian factory workers, as in exposed groups elsewhere. They noted that only one facility was studied, participants were self-selected, and numbers were small.

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: Cross-sectional screening of self-selected volunteers with work histories, chest X-rays and lung function tests
• Who was studied: 148 production workers, former workers and retirees from one Colombian friction products factory with a workforce of about 500
• Exposure: Chrysotile asbestos used in making automotive friction products. No exposure measurements are reported. Time since first exposure ranged from 4 to 34 years.
• Main results:
  • 19 of 148 X-rays had changes consistent with prior asbestos exposure, mostly parenchymal
  • Of the 19 positive films: 11 were read as 1/0, 5 as 1/1, 1 as 0/1 with bilateral pleural plaques, 1 as 1/0 with calcified plaques, and 1 with calcified plaques on the diaphragm. In total, 12 films were read as 1/0.
  • No lung cancers or mesotheliomas were found among the workers examined
  • Most workers with changes developed them within 20 years of first exposure. By time since first exposure, the table shows 5 of 19 positive (26.3%) at 10 to 14 years, 7 of 27 (25.9%) at 15 to 19 years, 6 of 58 (17.2%) at 20 to 24 years, 1 of 24 (4.1%) at 25 to 29 years, and none among those at under 10 years or at 30 to 34 years.
  • Lung function was not altered in most participants. Where changes were found, the authors usually thought they were related to smoking.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that asbestos disease is clearly present among Colombian asbestos factory workers, as in other exposed populations around the world.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • Only one facility was studied
  • Participants were self-selected volunteers
  • Small numbers

Topics

The National Library of Medicine indexes this study under subjects our site covers: Chrysotile, Pleural plaques and thickening.

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Friction Products, Chrysotile, Informed Consent.

Related studies

• Radiological changes in asbestos cement workers — K. Jakobsson, U. Strömberg, et al. (1995)
• The prevalence of pleural plaques and/or pulmonary changes among construction workers in Okayama, Japan — T. Kishimoto, K. Morinaga, et al. (2000)
• Workers with Libby amphibole exposure: retrospective identification and progression of radiographic changes — T.C. Larson, C.A. Meyer, et al. (2010)
• Effects of Occupational Hazards on Job Stress and Mental Health of Factory Workers and Miners: A Propensity Score Analysis — Y. Lu, Z. Zhang, et al. (2020)
• Metsovo lung: pleural calcification and restrictive lung function in northwestern Greece. Environmental exposure to mineral fiber as etiology — S.H. Constantopoulos, J.A. Goudevenos, et al. (1985)
• Lung function in relation to radiographic changes in asbestos workers — S. Zedda, G. Aresini, et al. (1973)

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