Silicosis
Silicosis is a disabling lung condition caused by the inhalation of crystalline silica, a mineral commonly found in various natural and industrial environments, including rocks and sand. This occupational illness is particularly prevalent among workers in industries characterized by high dust exposure, such as foundry work, construction, and mining. Historically recognized by ancient physicians, silicosis was formally acknowledged as a distinct disorder in the mid-twentieth century, following debates about the role of environmental factors versus unsanitary living conditions in respiratory diseases.
The illness occurs when inhaled silica dust scars lung tissue, leading to fibrotic nodules that can impair breathing and overall lung function. While improvements in industrial hygiene have reduced silicosis cases in industrialized nations, recent trends indicate a worrying increase in cases, especially among young workers in artificial stone production. The disease poses serious health risks, including an elevated likelihood of developing tuberculosis and lung cancer.
As a response to its dangers, many countries now mandate protective measures for at-risk workers, although concerns persist regarding the potential relocation of hazardous industries to less developed nations where regulations may be less stringent. This situation raises ethical questions about worker safety and health standards globally.
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Silicosis
DEFINITION: Disabling condition of the lungs caused by the inhalation of crystalline silica
The recognition of silicosis as a distinct occupational illness led industrialized nations to create regulations aimed at protecting workers from inhaling crystalline silica. Such regulations have not been adopted in many less developed nations, however.
Silica, or silicon dioxide, often referred to as quartz, is one of the most common minerals on earth, occurring in a wide variety of natural and industrial settings. It is found in almost all rock and sand; sandstone, for example, is composed primarily of silica. Silicosis thus occurs most often as an occupational illness among workers in what are known as the dusty trades, such as foundry work, construction, and mining.
Ancient Greek and Roman physicians recognized the high of lung diseases among quarrymen and miners, which is one reason criminals were often sentenced to work at those occupations. Still, researchers did not recognize silicosis as a distinct disorder until almost the twentieth century. Indeed, following the discovery of the tuberculin bacillus during the nineteenth century, some physicians disputed the existence of environmental disorders such as silicosis. Rather than accepting that a specific environmental factor, such as high levels of quartz dust, caused disabling lung conditions, many physicians blamed workers’ ill health on a combination of unsanitary living conditions and bacterial infections. By the mid-twentieth century, health professionals recognized silicosis as a distinct occupational illness.
Silicosis is considered to be an environmental illness because the disorder is caused by to silica rather than transmitted as an infectious disease. Although silica is not a toxin in itself, crystalline silica can scar sensitive lung tissue and lead to the development of fibrotic nodules in the lungs. As these nodules grow in size and number, the lungs stiffen, and breathing becomes more difficult. Depending on the level of exposure to silica, the onset of disabling and even fatal silicosis can occur within only a few weeks or months. More commonly, however, silicosis takes many years to develop. Sufferers of silicosis may eventually become disabled from diminished lung capacity and may be at higher risk for developing other diseases such as tuberculosis and lung cancer. In some cases, the decreased flow of blood to the lungs caused by silicosis can cause the heart to enlarge. In the twwnty-first century, silicosis was becoming increasingly rare in industrialized nations because of improvements in industrial hygiene. According to a 2015 study in the journal Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the number of silicosis deaths in the United States dropped from 185 in 1999 to 111 in 2013. However, in the 2010s and into the 2020s, the number of silicosis and related deaths have begun to rise, especially among young people who work with artificial stone. A 2022 study in BMC Pulmonary Medicine, found that more than 12,900 silicosis-related deaths occurred worldwide in 2019.
In most industrialized nations, workers whose jobs expose them to high levels of crystalline silica are now required to wear protective masks and respirators. Some environmental ethicists are concerned that more stringent occupational health and safety standards in countries such as the United States and Canada could cause industries to move dusty, high-risk manufacturing operations to less developed nations. Rather than improving working conditions at existing foundries in the American Midwest, for example, some corporations have chosen to close those facilities and build plants in countries where regulations are perceived as less burdensome, workers are less well educated and therefore unlikely to be aware of the risks associated with silica, and no system of workers’ compensation insurance for occupational diseases exists.
Bibliography
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Chen, Shimin, Miao Liu, and Fei Xie. "Global and National Burden and Trends of Mortality and Disability–Adjusted Life Years For Silicosis, From 1990 to 2019: Results from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019." BMC Pulmonary Medicine, vol. 22, no. 1, 21 June 2022, p. 240, doi: 10.1186/s12890-022-02040-9. Accessed 23 July 2024.
Greenberg, Michael I., et al., eds. Occupational, Industrial, and Environmental Toxicology. 2d ed. St Louis, Mo.: C. V. Mosby, 2003.
Mazurek, Jacek M., et al. "Update: Silicosis Mortality — United States, 1999–2013." Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, vol. 64, no. 23, 19 June 2015, pp. 653–654, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4584739/. Accessed 23 July 2024.
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