Source: Annual Congress 2002 - Asbestos and silica
Disease area: Interstitial lung diseases

Abstract

590 smoking workers exposed to asbestos were examined with high resolution computed tomography (HRCT), spirometry and diffusing capacity in order to study the character of their lung function impairment. Based on the HRCT scoring the workers were divided into five groups: fibrosis (F),emphysema (E),combined emphysema and fibrosis (C), adherences (A),and pleural thickenings (P). Moderate impairment of FEV1 (OR 2.723; CI 1.310, 5.565) and FVC (OR 2.805; CI 1.052, 6.886) were significantly associated with C. Severe impairment of diffusing capacity was not associated with P (OR 0.207;CI 0.085,0.446) or F (OR 0.356; CI 0.082, 1.053), but associated with C (OR 4.944; CI 2.475, 9.767). The results indicate that the impairment of lung function in asbestos exposed workers is mostly determined by the simultaneous presence of emphysema and fibrosis.

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P. L. Piirila, M. Lindqvist, S. Kaleva, L. Kivisaari, T. Vehmas, A. R. A. Sovijarvi, H. Nordman (Helsinki, Finland). Lung function impairment in asbestos exposed workers. Eur Respir J 2002; 20: Suppl. 38, 840

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