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Friday 19, November, 2004, 12:30-18:30, (16:00-17:00, Q&A) No.3 CR Saturday 20, November, 2004, 09:30-18:30, (16:00-17:00, Q&A) No.3 CR Sunday 21, November, 2004, 09:30-12:30, No.3 CR Poster Sessions Supervision and Cooperation of the Medical Examinations for the Workers of Asbestos-Processing Plants in Poland: AMIANTUS Project Bozenna Stankiewicz-Choroszucha1, Neonila Szeszenia-Dabrowska2, Zuzanna Szuber2 1Ministry of Health, Poland 2Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine, Lodz, Poland ABSTRACT The periodical prophylactic examinations of the former workers of asbestos-processing plants in Poland are mandatory under the provisions of the Act on the Ban of Use of Asbestos-Containing Products of June 19th, 1997, as further amended on March 14th, 2003. The generally recognised adverse health effects of asbestos exposure, such as asbestosis, mesothelioma or lung cancer, constitute the rationale for the statutory obligation to finance prophylactic medical examinations for the workers who have ever been exposed to asbestos dust, from the State budget. The periodical medical examinations enable diagnosing the diseases in the early (including presymptomatic) stages of their development, when suitable treatment can be undertaken to prevent or retard the pathological processes. To carry the provisions of the Act into effect, a program of prophylactic medical examinations has been launched. All workers of the 28 Polish asbestos-processing plants specified in the Act are entitled to periodic medical examinations and free-of-charge drugs designed to treat asbestos-related diseases. As the asbestos-processing plants were scattered throughout Poland, many health care units must be involved in the examinations. Thus, coordination and supervision of examinations conducted by several ten physicians from 12 Polish health care units is necessary. The coordination is intended to enhance: (1) implementation of standardised method for medical examinations, as well as relevant training and consultancy, (2) monitoring adverse respiratory health effects in workers occupationally exposed to asbestos dust, (3) running a central register of workers exposed to asbestos, (4) running a data base on the results of prophylactic examinations. The tasks completed in 2000-2003 have made it possible to develop a data base from the records in the "Examination Cards" received by the Coordination Centre and containing information on 4850 workers and 6830 examinations performed in those workers in the course of the project. Among the total of 4850 workers, asbestosis was diagnosed in 698 (14.4%). There were also 16 cases of lung cancer, and 11 patients had pleural mesothelioma. The radiological findings included 1486 cases (30.6%) of circumscribed diaphragmatic parietal plaques, while opacities were visible in lung radiograms of 1778 patients (36.7%). Compared to the previous examinations, worse radiological findings were noted for 11.7% patients, while in the clinical examinations alone, worse results were detected in 4.6% patients. Thus, the implementation of the prophylactic examinations program has resulted in a better detectability of the diseases associated with exposure to asbestos fibres. |