Estimates of cumulative risk, prevalence, and excess lifetime risks of radiographic silicosis due to exposure to respirable crystalline silica at the current OSHA permissable exposure limit
| Study | Industry | Outcome and ILO criterion | Measure | Follow up after employmen t | Estimate (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| *Cumulative risk based on 40 y at 0.1 mg/m3 quartz; †Cumulative risk based on 40 y at 0.05 mg/m3 cristobalite; ‡Cumulative risk based on 45 y at 0.1 mg/m3 quartz; §Lifetime excess risk based on 45 y at 0.1 mg/m3 quartz. | |||||
| Studies with little follow up after employment: | |||||
| Muir et al40* | Hard rock mining (gold) | Radiographic, ILO: 1/1 | Cumulative risk | 0 y | 1.2 |
| Hughes et al20† | Diatomaceous earth (low exposure intensity) | Radiographic, ILO: 1/0 | Cumulative risk | Minimal | 1.1 |
| Diatomaceous earth (high exposure intensity) | Radiographic, ILO: 1/0 | Cumulative risk | Minimal | 3.7 | |
| Ng and Chan44 | Granite quarry | radiographic, ILO: 1/1 | Prevalence | Minimal | 6.0 |
| LeGrand-Cattan et al45 | Ceramics industry | Radiographic, ILO: 1/0 | Prevalence | 0 y | 31.0 |
| This study | Diatomaceous earth | Radiographic, ILO: 1/0 | Lifetime excess risk | Minimal | 7.5 |
| Studies with follow up after employment: | |||||
| Hnizdo and Sluis-Cremer41‡ | Hard rock mining (gold) | Radiographic, ILO: 1/1 | Cumulative risk | <43 y | 77.0 |
| Kreiss et al43‡ | Hard rock mining | Radiographic, ILO: 1/0 | Cumulative risk | <40 y | 82.0 |
| Steenland and Brown42§ | Hard rock mining (gold) | Radiographic, ILO: 1/1 and mortality | Lifetime excess risk | 11–25 y | 35.0 |
| Chen et al46‡ | Tin mining | Radiographic, ILO:∼1/1 | Cumulative risk | <34 y | 55.0 |