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Friday 19, November, 2004 17:45 - 19:30, No.2 Conference Room Workshop B Asbestos and Construction Chairs: Naoki Toyama and Anders Englund A Study on Asbestos Exposure, Health Effects and Causes of Deaths among Construction Workers Eiji Shibata1, Hitoshi Kubota2, Jian Sun3, Kiyoshi Sakai4, Ippei Mori2, Naomi Hisanaga2, Fumio Kobayashi1 1 Aichi Medical University, Japan 2 National Institute of Industrial Health, Japan 3 The Institute of Health Economics, Canada 4 Nagoya City Public Health Institute, Japan ABSTRACT Focusing on the members of Construction Workers' Health Insurance Society, we have conducted various researches on construction-labor-related asbestos exposure and advised taking full examination and medical treatment for any health problems. In the present report, we briefly outline our activities and research findings obtained so far. 1) Asbestos exposure during the handling of asbestos-containing building materials We collected suspicious building materials to check for the presence of asbestos using analytical electron microscopes. Of the 23 materials collected, 17 were found to contain chrysotile or amosite. It was also found that a worker would possibly be exposed to an asbestos concentration of 100 fibers/cm3 or more in her/his breathing area when cutting an asbestos-containing material with a radial arm saw. 2) Survey of the use of asbestos-containing materials We conducted questionnaire surveys, which yielded 7,411 responses (response ratio: 79.3%), and found that those who had inhaled asbestos dust very often and sometimes accounted for 13.7% and 26.4%, respectively. The profession most frequently exposed to such situations was carpenter, and the material most frequently used was asbestos plate. 3) Chest X-ray survey of inorganic dust's health effects Since 1988, we have interviewed the members who showed asbestos-related symptoms on their chest X-rays taken in regular checkups, advised them to take full examination and medical treatment or gave health guidance. 4) Epidemiological research on the causes of death Using the data on 17,667 deaths of members who were in the Society for 1 year or longer between 1973 and 1993, we investigated the characteristics of the causes of their death in comparison with the population of prefectures they resided in. Trachea/ bronchus/lung cancer, accidents and harmful effects showed high overall standardized mortality ratios. |