Experience of diagnostics and treatment of «foundry fever»

Abstract

Casting fever is one of the most common occupational diseases that occurs in workers engaged in metal casting, galvanizing steel, or welding galvanized steel. This production intoxication can be individual, and in rare cases be massive. Purpose of the study: to analyze the clinical manifestations, medical care tactics, sanitary and hygienic indicators of the working environment in the event of an acute mass disease in workers of a metallurgical plant in the city of Darkhan (Mongolia), as well as the experience of treating such patients in the Irkutsk Toxicological Center. Material and methods. A retrospective descriptive study according to the medical documents of workers injured in an emergency at the Metallurgical Plant, as well as patients of the Irkutsk Toxicology Center hospitalized due to the “foundry fever” in 1999-2021. Mathematical processing of the obtained results was carried out on a PC using the Microsoft Office 2016 and STATISTICA 8.0 application software package. When testing the null hypothesis of equal shares, the criterion z was used. To analyze the quantitative indicators, the Me median of the interquartile range was calculated (Q25 – Q75). Results. Signs of a “foundry fever” were identified in 71 working foundries of the Darkhan Metallurgical Plant. The condition of 51 people required hospitalization; the rest was provided on an outpatient basis. The most common signs of the disease were: weakness, dizziness, headache, fever, abdominal pain, diarrhea. Against the background of the treatment, the main signs of the disease disappeared within 2-3 days. Weakness and headache persisted beyond more than a week. During sanitary-hygienic research in the air of the working area of the foundry, elevated concentrations of metals were found. Patients of the Irkutsk Toxicological Center revealed similar symptoms and similar treatment results. Conclusion. “Foundry fever” in production conditions can be not only individual, but also massive. Disease prevention measures include technological improvements in the production process and the use of effective personal protective equipment, and when a group or mass injury occurs, it is advisable to use the developed emergency care algorithm.