Survey of environmental exposure to asbestos in the town of Buyuktatlar, Turkey

Our plain-English summary of Survey of environmental exposure to asbestos in the town of Buyuktatlar, Turkey, by N. Köksal, M. Çelik, H. Kahraman, et al (International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health, 2012).

The study

• Authors: N. Köksal, M. Çelik, H. Kahraman, H.Ç. Ekerbiçer, C.E. Dağlı, F. Özkan
• Journal: International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health
• Published: 2012;18(2):130-4
• Cited by: 3 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Abstract

Asbestos-related cases admitted to Chest Diseases Clinic of Kahramanmaras Sutcu Imam University Medical Faculty generally came from Buyuktatlar, a town adjacent to the Afsin district of Kahramanmaraş city. This led us to screen for lung pathologies due to exposure to environmental asbestos in the town of Buyuktatlar. Six hundred and eighty-five inhabitants older than 30 years living in the town were identified as the study group and 488 persons (71·2%) were accepted for evaluation. Then, chest X-rays of these cases were taken and bilateral pleural plaque, bilateral pleural thickening, reticular lung infiltrations, and costophrenic angle obliteration were evaluated as asbestos-related disorders (ARD). ARD were diagnosed in 56 (11·5%) of the 488 chest X-rays that were assessed and no differences were observed between genders. Twenty-five of the cases were investigated by high-resolution computed tomography. Twenty-four were confirmed as ARD. In addition, chrysotile fiber was found in two of four soil samples taken from the town.

In plain English

This descriptive screening study looked for asbestos-related disorders among residents of Buyuktatlar, a town in Anatolia, Turkey, where local white soil is used as whitewash and stucco on house walls. Of 685 residents aged 30 or older, 488 (71.2%) were included, and 463 of them (94.9%) had used white soil or lived in a house where it was used. Three pulmonologists read chest X-rays. Changes judged asbestos-related were found in 56 of the 488 (11.47%), most often calcified pleural plaques (48 cases) and diffuse pleural thickening (22 cases). Rates were similar in women (10.4%) and men (12.8%). People with these changes were older on average. Among people aged 60 and over, 34 of 131 (25.9%) had them, compared with 6.2% of those aged 30 to 59. Only 25 of the 56 agreed to a high-resolution CT scan, and in 24 the changes were confirmed as asbestos-related. Chrysotile fibers were found in two of four soil samples. The authors concluded that residents are at risk of exposure to environmental asbestos. They noted that not every X-ray case had a CT scan.

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 cross-sectional screening study using a questionnaire, chest X-rays, high-resolution CT for X-ray-positive cases, and soil sample analysis
• Who was studied: Residents aged 30 or older of Buyuktatlar town (total population 1442), Anatolia, Turkey. 685 were eligible, 510 came and agreed, 22 were excluded for incomplete questionnaires, and 488 were included (269 women, 219 men). Study dates are not given.
• Exposure: Environmental exposure from local white soil used as whitewash and stucco in homes. 463 of 488 (94.9%) had used white soil or lived in a house where it was used. X-ray diffraction found chrysotile fibers in two of four soil samples.
• Main results:
  • On chest X-ray, 56 of 488 participants (11.47%) had asbestos-related disorders.
  • Among the 56 cases, the most common finding was calcified pleural plaques (48 cases, 85.7%), followed by diffuse pleural thickening (22 cases, 39%).
  • Asbestos-related disorders were found in 28 women (10.4%) and 28 men (12.8%). The frequency was similar in both sexes (P greater than 0.05).
  • Mean age was 59.9 (plus or minus 12.3) years in people with asbestos-related disorders, significantly higher than 49.6 (plus or minus 12.6) years in those without (P less than 0.05).
  • Among people aged 60 and over, 34 of 131 (25.9%) had asbestos-related disorders, compared with 6.2% of 357 people aged 30 to 59.
  • Of the 56 X-ray cases invited, 25 (11 female, 14 male) agreed to high-resolution CT. In 24, the findings were confirmed as asbestos-related; one was diagnosed with kyphoscoliosis. The authors calculated a positive predictive value of 96% for chest X-ray, taking CT as the standard.
  • On chest X-ray, 49 participants (10.0%) had changes not related to asbestos, including emphysema in 32.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that the prevalence of asbestos-related disorders in Buyuktatlar was 11.47% and that inhabitants are at risk of being exposed to environmental asbestos.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • Not every case found on chest X-ray had a high-resolution CT scan.

Topics

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

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Environmental Exposure, Chest X-Ray, Bilateral, Pleural Plaques, Pleural Thickening, Costophrenic angle, Chrysotile.

Related studies

• Lung cancer and mesothelioma in towns with environmental exposure to asbestos in Eastern Anatolia — H.C. Hasanoglu, Z. Yildirim, et al. (2006)
• Malignant pleural mesothelioma due to environmental mineral fiber exposure in Turkey. Analysis of 135 cases — Z.T. Selçuk, L. Cöplü, et al. (1992)
• Lung diseases due to environmental exposures to erionite and asbestos in Turkey — S. Emri, A. Demir, et al. (2002)
• Incidence of malignant pleural mesothelioma due to environmental asbestos fiber exposure in the southeast of Turkey — A. Senyiğit, C. Babayiğit, et al. (2000)
• Malignant pleural mesothelioma caused by environmental exposure to asbestos in the Southeast of Turkey: CT findings in 117 patients — A. Senyiğit, H. Bayram, et al. (2000)
• Assessment of environmental asbestos exposure in Turkey by bronchoalveolar lavage — P. Dumortier, L. Coplü, et al. (1998)

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