Respiratory diseases of coal miners

Principal Investigator

Thomas Robins

Co-Principal Investigators

Alfred Franzblau, Rajen Naidoo, Jill Murray

Funding Sources

SIMARC

About this Project

The effects of coal dust exposure on the respiratory tract are complex. Long term work as a coal miner at relatively high exposures has been associated with the risk for pneumoconiotic X ray changes which may be accompanied by a restrictive pattern of pulmonary function. In addition, at perhaps lower exposures, coal mining is associated with chronic bronchitis and obstructive PFT changes. We conducted the first-ever epidemiologic study of the respiratory health of coal miners in South Africa. Because South Africa has a unique resource, i.e., standardized autopsy data on the hearts and lungs of tens of thousands of miners, this venue offered the opportunity to make the most comprehensive assessment ever of the relationships between dust exposure and chest radiograph and pulmonary function findings with specific pathologic diagnoses.