TY - JOUR T1 - Two-year follow-up of exposure, engineering controls, respiratory protection and respiratory health among workers at an indium-tin oxide (ITO) production and reclamation facility JF - Occupational and Environmental Medicine JO - Occup Environ Med DO - 10.1136/oemed-2021-107897 SP - oemed-2021-107897 AU - R Reid Harvey AU - M Abbas Virji AU - Brie H Blackley AU - Marcia L Stanton AU - Bruce C Trapnell AU - Brenna Carey AU - Terrance Healey AU - Kristin J Cummings Y1 - 2022/04/11 UR - http://oem.bmj.com/content/early/2022/04/11/oemed-2021-107897.abstract N2 - Objectives To determine whether engineering controls and respiratory protection had measurable short-term impact on indium exposure and respiratory health among current indium-tin oxide production and reclamation facility workers.Methods We documented engineering controls implemented following our 2012 evaluation and recorded respirator use in 2012 and 2014. We measured respirable indium (Inresp) and plasma indium (InP) in 2012 and 2014, and calculated change in Inresp (∆Inresp) and InP (∆InP) by the 13 departments. We assessed symptoms, lung function, serum biomarkers of interstitial lung disease (Krebs von den Lungen (KL)-6 and surfactant protein (SP)-D) and chest high-resolution CT at both time points and evaluated workers who participated in both 2012 and 2014 for changes in health outcomes (new, worsened or improved).Results Engineering controls included installation of local exhaust ventilation in both grinding departments (Rotary and Planar) and isolation of the Reclaim department. Respiratory protection increased in most (77%) departments. ∆InP and ∆Inresp often changed in parallel by department. Among 62 workers participating in both 2012 and 2014, 18 (29%) had new or worsening chest symptoms and 2 (3%) had functional decline in lung function or radiographic progression, but average KL-6 and SP-D concentrations decreased, and no cases of clinical indium lung disease were recognised.Conclusions Increased engineering controls and respiratory protection can lead to decreased Inresp, InP and biomarkers of interstitial lung disease among workers in 2 years. Ongoing medical monitoring of indium-exposed workers to confirm the longer-term effectiveness of preventive measures is warranted.No data are available. Due to restrictions imposed under the US Privacy Act and the limitations of what participants consented to, the data underlying the analyses presented, beyond what is provided in the paper, are confidential and not available to researchers outside the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). For more information about NIOSH’s policy regarding sensitive data, see https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/ocas/datahandle.html. ER -