Respiratory diseases among Zambian copper miners

Principal Investigator

Thomas Robins

Co-Principal Investigators

Alfred Franzblau, Patrick Hayumbu, Noah Seixas

Funding Sources

NIOSH

About this Project

Copper and most other metal ores are frequently found in association with high concentrations of crystalline silica. Respiratory diseases associated with silica exposures may include silicosis, silico-tuberculosis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Our group is investigating associations, among a cohort of active and retired copper miners, of exposure to respirable dust, and especially respirable silica, and measures of respiratory health status including symptoms, pulmonary function testing, and chest radiography. Individual miners' current and cumulative dust and silica exposure are being estimated through a combination of new dust/silica personal exposure measurements among a stratified random sample of miners in four mines of the participating mining corporations, examination of work histories and production records in these mines, and exposure modeling. Respiratory health status of miners will be determined through newly generated and existing recent data (symptoms, pulmonary function, chest radiography). Lastly, exposure-response relationships of dust and silica to health outcomes will be examined. This is the first such study in the world being conducted among copper miners.