Evaluation of pulmonary function and respiratory symptoms in pyrochlore mine workers

Abstract

Objective: To identify respiratory symptoms and evaluate lung function in mine workers. Methods: This was a cross-sectional observational study involving production sector workers of a pyrochlore mining company. The subjects completed the British Medical Research Council questionnaire, which is designed to evaluate respiratory symptoms, occupational exposure factors, and smoking status. In addition, they underwent pulmonary function tests with a portable spirometer. Results: The study involved 147 workers (all male). The mean age was 41.37 ± 8.71 years, and the mean duration of occupational exposure was 12.26 ± 7.09 years. We found that 33 (22.44%) of the workers had respiratory symptoms and that 26 (17.69%) showed abnormalities in the spirometry results. However, we found that the spirometry results did not correlate significantly with the presence of respiratory symptoms or with the duration of occupational exposure. Conclusions: The frequencies of respiratory symptoms and spirometric changes were low when compared with those reported in other studies involving occupational exposure to dust. No significant associations were observed between respiratory symptoms and spirometry results.

Respiratory Symptoms and Diminished Lung Functions Associated with Occupational Dust Exposure Among Iron Ore Mine Workers in Iran

“…Cigarette smoking imparts plummeting and perpetual hazards on the respiratory system, which in combination with dust-inhalation further casts resonating health perils on victims [38]; especially coal-mine workers [39]. Similar inferences were documented from Iran [40], Tanzania [41] and Ethiopia [42]; although researchers from Brazil defied such subtext [43]. Kuempel et al reported that emphysema was more severe amid coal miners than non-miners among ever and never smokers; while cumulative exposure to respirable coal-mine dust was a considerable predictor of emphysema severity once accounted for cigarette smoking, age at death, and race [44].…”

Prevalencia de la sintomatología respiratoria en trabajadores mineros del municipio de Socotá, Boyacá, 2017

“…Diabetes de tipo II 0 (0,0) 1 (0,1) 0 (0,0) 11 (1,4) 12 (1,5) Enfermedad cardiaca 1 (0,1) 0 (0,0) 0 (0,0) 1 (0,1) 2 (0,3) HIV 1 (0,1) 0 (0,0) 0 (0,0) 0 (0,0) 1 (0,1) En un principio, además de hacer un análisis descriptivo, se trató de correlacionar las variables en modelos bivariados en este estudio, con el fin de encontrar riesgos por medio de valores de la razón de momios (odds ratio, OR) pero dada la para la salud respiratoria con el paso del tiempo, según los resultados de la comparación entre grupos en cuanto a la sintomatología estudiada. Se acepta que las variables de esta encuesta pueden alterarse debido a múltiples factores, lo cual debe tenerse en cuenta en próximos estudios.…”

Cardiorespiratory changes from silica exposure in miners: an integrative review

“…The evaluation through the HRQoL questionnaire is important to understand beyond the physical dimension but also the impact of biopsychosocial (Souza et al, 2021). Borges et al (2016), in their observational cross-sectional study, surveyed 147 workers at a mining company and obtained the following result: 22.44% of the workers had respiratory symptoms such as cough and dyspnea, while 17.69% of them showed changes in spirometric data.…”