Silicosis in Coimbatore district of Tamil Nadu: A passive surveillance study

Abstract

Introduction:Silicosis in Coimbatore district of Tamil Nadu: A passive surveillance study.Aim:This study was done to describe the level of preventive measures and level of awareness among the patients diagnosed with silicosis during a one-year period.Settings and Design:Coimbatore Medical College Hospital.Materials and Methods:This is a passive surveillance study based on patients diagnosed with silicosis in our outpatient facility for a one-year period between January 1, 2012 and December 31, 2012.Results:Seventeen cases of silicosis were diagnosed based on history of exposure to silica and radiological features. The mean age was 55 years with 16 males and one female. The average duration of exposure was 22 years. A protective mask was used by 29% of the patients and one patient had awareness about the risks of exposure to silica. Active tuberculosis was found in 12% and old tuberculosis in 47% of patients; 59% of the patients were smokers. Spirometry showed a restrictive pattern in 59% of the patients. Radiologically nodular opacities with upper-zone predominance was found in majority of the cases.Conclusion:Most patients are exposed to silica in unorganized industries. Majority of the patients lack awareness about the disease and there is a low implementation of preventive and control measures. As this study was a passive surveillance, it represents only the tip of iceberg and an active field-level surveillance could reveal the true prevalence of this disease.

Silico-tuberculosis, silicosis and other respiratory morbidities among sandstone mine workers in Rajasthan- a cross-sectional study

“…Almost 90% of the mine workers were having abnormal spirometry findings which was insignificantly different between males and females. This finding is similar to the findings of the study conducted by Sivanmani et al [27] Tiwari RR et al had reported less proportion of workers with abnormal spirometry as compared to present study. [17,28] More than half of the mine workers in the present study were found to have abnormalities in chest x-ray, which was significantly more among male workers as compared to female workers.…”

“…The most common abnormality detected was reticulo-nodular opacities with bilateral involvement of all three zones. Similar kinds of observation through chest x-rays have been made by Sivanmani et al [27] in a stone crushing industry in Tamilnadu.…”

“…In the present study, prevalence of silico-tuberculosis was 7.4%, which is quite lower than the prevalence reported by Shamim M et al [6] and Tiwar RR et al [17] Prevalence of only tuberculosis in the present study was 10.0% and this finding is comparable to the studies conducted by Tiwar RR et al [17], Sivanmani et al [27] and Tiwari RR et al [33] Other respiratory diseases (4.3%) found in present study includes emphysema, pleural effusion, bronchiectasis and lung collapse. The most probable cause of lung collapse would have been spontaneous pneumothorax.…”

Awareness of Adverse Health Effects of Silica Dust Exposure Among Stone Quarry Workers in Ghana

“…Unfortunately, limited research has been conducted on silica dust health hazard awareness in developing countries unlike in the developed world (Falk et al, 2019;Nandi et al, 2018;Sayler et al, 2018;Seaton et al, 1991;Sivanmani & Rajathinakar, 2013). It is important silica exposed workers have adequate knowledge about the health hazards silica dust exposure can cause.…”

Percepción de Riesgo de Exposición Ocupacional a Sílice: Construcción y Validación de un Cuestionario en Chile

“…4 Por su relevancia para minimizar o evitar el daño a la salud, la mayor parte de los estudios sobre este tema se enfocan en la cuantificación del riesgo de exposición y en la efectividad de la implementación y uso de medidas preventivas. [4][5][6][7] Estos estudios muestran que la utilización de dispositivos de protección no depende exclusivamente de que existan estos en el lugar de trabajo, sino también de factores individuales y de la cultura laboral existente. [8][9][10] Un aspecto relevante y poco estudiado es la percepción del riesgo al que se está expuesto, lo que está condicionado, entre otros factores, por el conocimiento de los efectos de la exposición y la cultura del lugar de trabajo en relación con la protección.…”