bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A striking deposition of mineral particles in the lungs of a farmer: A case report
Authors: Gylseth Bjøhrn , Stettler Lloyd , Mowè Gunnar , Skaug Vidar , Lexow Peter 
Published: April 2007

AbstractThe object of this study was to analyze mineral particles in lung tissue from a farmer who underwent lobectomy due to a lung tumor and relate these analytical findings to occupational exposure and histopathological and clinical diagnoses. Despite no clear evidence of previous occupational dust exposure, heavy deposits of birefringent particles and slight pulmonary fibrosis were found during histopathological examination. Extracts from the lung tissue were analyzed by electron microscopy and X‐ray microanalysis for mineral particles. The major components of the dust were identified as mica, talc, and silica. Minor components included asbestos fibers and rutile fibers. Some of these fibers were coated by ferroproteins. Mica, quartz, feldspars (plagioclase), and rutile fibers were found in the soil from the farmer's potato storehouse. Based on these findings it is assumed that the slight pulmonary fibrosis is probably caused by the different mineral particles deposited.
Mortality among rubber workers: VII. Aerospace workers
Authors: Delzell Elizabeth , Monson Richard R. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractThis study evaluated cause‐specific mortality among 3,161 men who were employed in the aerospace division of a rubber manufacturing company. Compared to other production workers at the plant, aerospace workers in deicer and fuel cell manufacturing jobs experienced a 60% excess of deaths from lung cancer. Deicer and fuel cell workers who were under 65 years of age had lung cancer rates that were approximately twice those of other rubber workers of comparable age. Aerospace division employees also had elevated rates of bladder cancer, leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma. However, detailed analyses suggested that, with the exception of lung cancer, these cancer excesses were not likely to be attributable to employment in the aerospace division.
Mortality among rubber workers: VIII. Industrial products workers
Authors: Delzell Elizabeth , Monson Richard R. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractThis report compares the mortality experience of 6,533 men employed in the industrial products division of a rubber manufacturing company with that of U.S. males and of other rubber workers. For most causes of death the mortality rates of industrial products workers were lower than those of U.S. males and similar to those of other rubber workers. Relative to other rubber workers, men in the industrial products division had a 50% excess of deaths from lymphoma, a 90% excess of deaths from multiple myeloma, and a 20% excess of deaths from bladder cancer during the study period. The excesses of lymphoma and multiple myeloma were strongest during recent follow‐up in 1970–78 (observed/expected deaths: 10/4.3 for lymphoma; 10/4.4 for multiple myeloma), whereas bladder cancer mortality was not excessive during this calendar period.
Biochemical and electrophysiological study of subjects with a history of past lead exposure
Authors: Corsi G. , Bartolucci G. B. , Fardin P. , Negrin P. , Manzoni S. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractThe effects of lead on porphyrin metabolism and peripheral nervous system were studied in a group of 38 subjects who had not been exposed for a period of time, ranging from 3 to 27 years. The mean values for blood lead (PbB), chelated lead(PbUEDTA), and free erythrocyte protoporphyrin (FEP) were found to be significantly higher in the subjects with past lead exposure than in controls. In all cases the neurological examination was negative. The mean values for maximum motor conduction velocity (MMCV) and conduction velocity of the slower fibers (CVSF) of the ulnar and peroneal nerves were found to be significantly lower in the subjects with past lead exposure than in the control group of 23 subjects standardized for age. Signs of partial denervation were present in four cases, with two presenting a decrease of the motor conduction velocity (MCV) as well. No correlation was found between electrophysiological findings and biochemical indicators of dose and effect. The length of exposure showed a significant negative correlation only with the MMCV of the ulnar nerve. A significant difference from controls standardized for age was observed only in subjects with exposure of more than 6 months for all the electromyographic (EMG) parameters. It does not appear that the EMG findings could depend upon modest lead deposits still present in the organism; they should rather give evidence to the permanent effect of alterations that occurred during the prolonged exposure to lead.
The rules of the game: An analysis of Osha's enforcement strategy
Authors: Rappaport Stephen M. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractAlthough OSHA promulgates standards for chemical exposures on the basis of workers' relative risk of acquiring chronic disease, it interprets the limits as absolute levels never to be exceeded. This poses a dilemma to the gathering of useful information which can be used to assess and reduce exposures, because employers can maximize compliance outcomes by minimizing exposure monitoring. The result is that, in the absence of adequate information, the working population's true risk of acquiring disease is essentially unknown and average exposures of several times the permissible exposure limit (PEL) can be declared in compliance. The dilemma could be resolved if OSHA would define compliance in terms of one or more parameters of the cumulative exposure distribution. Since OSHA's current method of assessing risks is based upon average exposures, enforcement of the PEL as the limit of each worker's true mean exposure would be internally consistent. This change could have the effect of encouraging employers to monitor exposures since the confidence interval surrounding the mean can be narrowed with increased sample size.
Chromosome studies in human subjects chronically exposed to arsenic in drinking water
Authors: Vig B. K. , Figueroa M. L. , Cornforth M. N. , Jenkins S. H. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractA two‐year study was carried out on human subjects of various ages and backgrounds who had been drinking water containing more than 0.05 mg/liter (0.05 ppm) arsenic for a period of at least five years. The main aim was to correlate the frequency of chromosome aberrations and sister chromatid exchanges in the lymphocytes with the amount of arsenic in the water. In addition, we explored the incidence of skin cancer, fetal wastage, and genetic or developmental abnormalities. Several other variables—eg, coffee, wine, and cigarette consumption; sex, residence (rural vs urban); and exposure to chemicals, smelters, or pesticides—were also taken into consideration. The data on chromosome aberrations (104 exposed and 86 control individuals) and on sister chromatid exchanges (98 exposed and 83 control individuals) did not show that arsenic at concentrations used by our population (>0.05 mg/liter) has any effect on these parameters. Similarly, no other health effects of arsenic at these concentrations were found.
The incidence and progression of pneumoconiosis over nine years in U.S. coal miners: I. Principal findings
Authors: Attfield M. , Reger R. , Glenn R. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractChest radiographs, taken at a 9‐year interval for 1,261 U.S. coal miners, were read for pneumoconiosis side‐by‐side by six readers in a controlled trial. Incidence and progression of small, rounded opacities were consistent with levels predicted from dose‐response curves developed by the British Pneumoconiosis Field Research interpolated at a concentration derived from U.S. compliance levels mandated over the last 9 years. The results imply that the level of pneumoconiosis in U.S. miners is being reduced through application of the current 2 mg/m3 standard. The long developmental period for pneumoconiosis necessitates that further study be undertaken to verify this finding and to determine whether 2 mg/m3 is an appropriate regulatory dust level for the prevention of category 2 or greater simple pneumoconiosis over a 35‐year period.
The incidence and progression of pneumoconiosis over nine years in U.S. coal miners: II. Relationship with dust exposure and other potential causative factors
Authors: Attfield M. , Reger R. , Glenn R. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractExamination of the incidence and progression of pneumoconiosis over 9 years in 1,261 nationally distributed U.S. coal miners has been undertaken in relationship to potential causative factors. Use has been made of a large body of data on dust levels collected by the Mine Safety and Health Administration principally for compliance purposes. Reported dust levels were low and generally under the current 2 mg/m3 standard. No link between dust level and disease progression could be detected. Some evidence was seen that radiological change was related to dust exposures prior to the study in both coal and noncoal mines, and thus experienced before the current dust standards were mandated. Neither migration of miners nor mining method appeared to be associated with disease incidence or progression. None of these findings can be taken as final, as the period of study is short and the number of cases of pneumoconiosis few. Further study is under way to obtain more reliable information over a longer period of follow‐up.
Cytotoxicity and negligible genotoxicity of borax and borax ores to cultured mammalian cells
Authors: Landolph Joseph R. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractThe cytotoxicity and genotoxicity of refined borax and borax ores were studied in cultured mammalian cells. In V79 Chinese hamster cells, C3H/10T1/2 mouse embryo fibroblasts, and diploid human foreskin fibroblasts, crude borax ore, kernite ore, and refined borax were all cytotoxic. The lowest concentrations at which cytotoxicity was observed were 0.02 mg/ml and 0.1 mg/ml for borax ore in C3H/10T1/2 and human fibroblasts, respectively, 0.2 mg/ml for kernite ore in both cell types, and 0.1 mg/ml for refined borax in both C3H/10T1/2 and human fibroblasts. The cytotoxicity was dose dependent above these concentrations. The concentrations of borax ore, kernite ore, and refined borax that reduced the relative plating efficiency to 50% were approximately 3.2, 1.6, and 0.8 mg/ml, respectively, in human fibroblasts and were 0.8 mg/ml for all three substances in C3H/10T1/2 cells. All three borax samples were not significantly mutagenic in assays for mutation to ouabain resistance in human fibroblasts and C3H/10T1/2 cells and were at most only weakly mutagenic in an assay for mutation to 8‐azaguanine resistance in V79 Chinese hamster cells. Refined borax did not induce neoplastic transformation in C3H/10T1/2 cells. Crude borax ore and kernite ore induced weak transformation that was not dose‐dependent and was not reproducible in another experiment. Therefore, borax and its ores are cytotoxic to mammalian cells at high (mg/ml) concentrations and are at most weakly mutagenic but not significantly oncogenic as measured in a cell transformation assay.
Surveillance of workers exposed to mercury vapour: Validation of a previously proposed biological threshold limit value for mercury concentration in urine
Authors: Roels Harry , Gennart Jean‐Philippe , Lauwerys Robert , Buchet Jean‐Pierre , Malchaire Jacques , Bernard Alfred 
Published: April 2007

AbstractA cross‐sectional epidemiological study was carried out among subjects exposed to mercury (Hg) vapour, ie, a group of 131 male workers (mean age: 30.9 yr; average duration of exposure, 4.8 yr) and a group of 54 female workers (mean age, 29.9 yr; average duration of exposure 7 yr). The results were compared with those obtained in well‐matched control groups comprising 114 and 48 male and female workers, respectively. The intensity of current Hg vapour exposure was rather moderate as reflected by the levels of mercury in urine (HgU) (mean and 95th percentile: males 52 and 147 μg/g creatinine; females 37 and 63 μg/g creatinine) and of mercury in blood (mean and 95th percentile: males 1.4 and 3.7 μg/dl; females 0.9 and 1.4 μg/dl). Several symptoms mainly related to the central nervous system (memory disturbances, depressive feelings, fatigue, irritability) were more prevalent in the Hg‐exposed subjects. They were, however, not related to exposure parameters. In both male and female Hg‐exposed workers no significant disturbances were found in short‐term memory (audioverbal), simple reaction time (visual), critical flicker fusion, and colour discrimination ability. Only slight renal tubular effects were detected in Hg‐exposed males and females, ie, an increased urinary β‐galactosidase activity and an increased urinary excretion of retinolbinding protein. The prevalence of these preclinical renal effects was more related to the current exposure intensity (HgU) than to the duration of exposure and was detected mainly when HgU exceeds 50 μg/g creatinine. Changes in hand tremor spectrum recorded with an accelerometer were found in the Hg‐exposed males only. The prevalence of abnormal values for some hand tremor parameters (total velocity and total displacement in the 2‐50‐Hz band) was mainly increased in male workers exposed for more than 10 yr. Unlike the renal tubular effects, the preclinical signs of tremor were more related to the integrated exposure than to the current exposure. Since the female workers, who have been exposed to Hg vapour levels usually insufficient to increase their HgU levels above 50 μg/g creatinine, did not exhibit any change in hand tremor pattern, the results of the present study tend to validate our previously proposed biological threshold limit value of a HgU of 50 μg/g creatinine for workers chronically exposed to mercury vapour.
Medical and industrial hygiene characterization of the cotton waste utilization industry
Authors: Engelberg Alan L. , Piacitelli Gregory M. , Petersen Martin , Zey John , Piccirillo Richard , Morey Philip R. , Carlson Mark L. , Merchant James A. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractWe studied 260 workers in the cotton waste utilization industry and 310 “blue‐collar” control workers from nondusty industries in the same geographic area of the United States by respiratory symptom questionnaire and by pre‐ and postshift spirometry. We excluded 75 cotton workers and 75 control workers from statistical analysis because of prior hazardous occupational exposures. Plant‐wide, 8‐hour time‐weighted average exposures ranged from 0.28 mg/m3 to 7.80 mg/m3. The overall prevalence of symptoms compatible with byssinosis was 5.9% in cotton workers and 4.7% in the controls. Cotton workers with less than 2 years of employment had a significantly greater prevalence of bronchitis than their control counterparts. The cotton workers with 2 years or more of employment had significantly greater prevalences of bronchitis, shift decrement in forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) of ≥ 10%, and FEV1/FEV1‐predicted < 80%, than their control counterparts. Regression analysis showed that for matched cotton and control workers, the percentage decrement in FEV1 over the shift was significantly greater for cotton workers; and that in all cotton workers, longevity in industry had a negative effect on the before‐shift forced vital capacity (FVC). This study suggests that there are both acute and chronic effects of cotton exposure in the cotton waste utilization industry.
Fertility of male workers exposed to mercury vapor or to manganese dust: A questionnaire study
Authors: Lauwerys Robert , Roels Harry , Genet Pierre , Toussaint Guy , Bouckaert André , de Cooman Serge 
Published: April 2007

AbstractThe fertility of male workers exposed to mercury vapor or to manganese dust was assessed with the use of the questionnaire developed by Levine et al [1980]. In the mercury group (concentration of mercury in urine ranging from 5.1 to 272.1 μg/g creatinine), no statistically significant difference was found between the observed number of children and that expected on the basis of the reproductive experience of a well‐matched control group. On the contrary, by comparison with their corresponding controls, the manganese‐exposed workers exhibited a statistically significant deficit in the number of children during their period of exposure to the metal. The airborne concentration of manganese dusts at the different workplaces ranged from 0.07 to 8.61 mg/m3 with a geometric mean of 0.94 mg/m3.
Mortality of a municipal worker cohort: I. Males
Authors: Vena John E. , Sultz Harry A. , Fiedler Roger C. , Barnes Robert E. , Carlo George L. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractA retrospective cohort mortality study was conducted on 11,499 full‐time municipal employees of the City of Buffalo, New York, who were employed at least one day between January 1, 1950 and October 1, 1979 and worked a minimum of five years. This paper outlines the method of the study and presents the all cause and cause‐specific mortality for the male cohort of 10,128. Statistically significant deficits in mortality are seen for infectious diseases, diseases of the circulatory system, diseases of the respiratory system, and all external causes. Statistically significant increased mortality is seen for both malignant and benign neoplasms. All cause mortality was significantly lower than expected for professional, manager, and clerical workers. White‐collar workers exhibit a decreased risk of mortality from all diseases of the circulatory system, all diseases of the respiratory system, and all external causes of death. No statistically significant increased or decreased risk of mortality from specific cancer sites is seen for white‐collar workers. Blue‐collar workers show statistically significant deficits in mortality from infectious dieseases, all diseases of the circulatory system, all respiratory diseases, and all external causes. Blue‐collar workers exhibit statistically significant increases for benign and malignant neoplasms and in particular, malignant neoplasms of the esophagus, large intestine, and rectum. The meaning of these findings will be clarified through analyses of specific worker groups.
Pancreas cancer is unrelated to the workplace in Los Angeles
Authors: Mack Thomas M. , Peters John M. , Yu Mimi C. , Hanisch Rosemarie , Wright William E. , Henderson Brian E. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractFrom 1975 to 1981, 490 cases of exocrine adenocarcinoma of the pancreas, representative of those occurring in the working‐age population of Los Angeles County, were compared to matched neighborhood controls. Among the items of information obtained from each subject was a lifetime job history and a history of specific workplace exposures; this came directly from both case and control in 124 pairs. Although the matched cases and controls were generally comparable, they were not matched with respect to job history. While other strong risk factors for pancreas cancer were found in the same study, no significant or suggestive differences in the jobs or perceived chemical or process exposures between cases and controls were found. Those minor differences which were found did not suggest credible mechanisms of carcinogenesis when examined in detail. Our study does not point to the workplace as an important determinant of pancreas cancer in the economically diversified urban area of Los Angeles.
Silica, pneumoconiosis, and carcinoma of the lung
Authors: Heppleston A. G. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractThe current argument about the carcinogenicity of inhaled silica is not clarified by reliance on morbidity and mortality experience divorced from or incompletely related to data on environmental exposure. Human evidence provides the ultimate basis for assessing such risks, and numerous studies of the effects of inhaling dusts rich or poor in silica content on the prevalence of pulmonary carcinoma have been performed on large series of cases from major mining areas of the world. When due allowance is made for substances inhaled concomitantly with exposure to silica and for personal pollution by cigarette smoking, the weight of evidence is against a carcinogenic role for uncombined silicon dioxide. Moreover, pneumoconiosis due to compact mineral particles does not appear to determine the onset of lung cancer. Cellular behaviour suggests reasons for the different responses to compact and fibrous particles acting alone.
Respiratory predictors of disability days: A five year prospective study of U.S. coal miners
Authors: Ames Richard G. , Trent Roger B. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractA 5‐year prospective analysis tests the hypothesis that coal miners who have impaired respiratory health also experience greater numbers of disability days due to occupational injury. Occupational and respiratory health information collected for the period 1977 through 1981 by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) on 1,118 U.S. underground coal miners was linked to coal miner injury records collected under a mandatory reporting system by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). Respiratory impairment, based on spirometric measures, and a questionnaire measure of chronic bronchitis symptoms, after adjustment for cigarette smoking and total years of underground mining, did not provide statistically significant prediction of average disability days. In addition, respiratory impairment did not predict the number of episodes of occupational injuries resulting in days lost from work.
Inhibition of rna synthesis by benzene metabolites and their covalent binding to dna in rabbit bone marrow mitochondria in vitro
Authors: Kalf George F. , Snyder Robert , Rushmore Thomas H. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractMitoplasts from rabbit bone marrow cells in vitro incubated with benzene metabolites showed a concentration‐dependent inhibition of mitochondrial RNA synthesis. The 50% molar inhibitory concentration for each metabolite was determined to be p‐benzoquinone, 2 × 10−6; phenol, 2.5 × 10−5; hydroquinone, 5 × 10−5; catechol, 2 × 10−3; benzene, 1.6 × 10−2. Activated metabolites of radiolabeled benzene covalently bound to mitochondrial DNA in vitro. Labeled deoxynucleosides, enzymatically produced from DNA isolated from mitoplasts prelabeled in DNA with [3H]dGTP and exposed to [14C]benzene in vitro, were chromatographed on a Sephadex LH‐20 column to obtain deoxynucleoside‐adducts. The elution profiles indicated that mtDNA contained seven deoxyguanosine‐adducts. A similar experiment in which the mtDNA was prelabeled with [3H]dATP indicated that two deoxyadenosine‐adducts of mt DNA were formed from benzene in vitro. Tentative identification of several deoxyguanosine‐adducts indicates that p‐benzoquinone, hydroquinone, phenol, and 1,2,4‐benzenetriol produced from benzene form adducts with guanine.
Gallium‐67 citrate imaging in underground coal miners
Authors: Kanner Richard E. , Barkman H. William , Rom William N. , Taylor Andrew T. 
Published: April 2007

AbstractTwenty‐two underground coal workers with 27 or more years of coal dust exposure were studied with gallium‐67 citrate (Ga‐67) imaging. Radiographic evidence of coal workers pneumoconiosis (CWP) was present in 12 subjects. The Ga‐67 scan was abnormal in 11 of 12 with, and 9 of 10 without, CWP. The Ga‐67 uptake index was significantly correlated with total dust exposure (p < 0.01) and approached significant correlation with the radiographic profusion of the nodules (0.10 > p > 0.05). There was no correlation between Ga‐67 uptake and spirometric function, which was normal in this group of patients; furthermore, increased lung uptake of gallium did not indicate a poor prognosis in subjects no longer exposed to coal dust. While coal dust exposure may be associated with positive Ga‐67 lung scan in coal miners with many years of coal dust exposure, the scan provided no information not already available from a careful exposure history and a chest radiograph. Since Ga‐67 scanning is a relatively expensive procedure we would recommend that its use in subjects with asymptomatic CWP be limited to an investigative role and not be made part of a routine evaluation.