Worker's Pneumoconiosis Research Articles

Pneumoconiosis among miners in coal mines

<p>Pneumoconiosis of workers in brown coal mines is an occupational disease, a global public health problem and a serious disease of the lung parenchyma. If it is not prevented, it leads to irreversible changes in the lungs with complications. The disorder occurs after prolonged exposure to coal dust containing high concentration of free crystalline silica. Data in literature regarding its health impact on people working in coal mines are relatively scarce. Recently, there has been an increase in miners' pneumoconiosis, which requires a stricter policy to protect workers in the mines. There are two classical types of CWP: simple and complicated. The main diagnostic method of CWP is based on a specific X-ray finding, and the auxiliary method of choice is spirometry. The pathophysiological mechanism of CWP formation is not fully known, although it has been shown that damage to the lung parenchyma goes through three phases caused by effect of lung cells exposure to coal dust. Studies show that cytokines play an important role in inflammation and the immune response as mediators of toxic and pathogenic effects in CWP. A link between exposure to coal dust in brown coal mines and the development of CWP has also been demonstrated, with a consequent reduction in the physical and psychological quality of life of workers in the mines.</p>

Exploration study on serum metabolic profiles of Chinese male patients with artificial stone silicosis, silicosis, and coal worker's pneumoconiosis

Long-term exposure to inhaled silica dust induces pneumoconiosis, which remains a heavy burden in developing countries. Modern industry provides new resources of occupational SiO2 leading to artificial stone silicosis especially in developed countries. This study aimed to characterize the serum metabolic profile of pneumoconiosis and artificial stone silicosis patients. Our case-control study recruited 46 pairs of pneumoconiosis patients and dust-exposed workers. Nontargeted metabolomics and lipidomics by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry platform were conducted to characterize serum metabolic profile in propensity score-matched (PSM) pilot study. 54 differential metabolites were screened, 24 of which showed good screening efficiency through receiver operating characteristics (ROC) in pilot study and validation study (both AUC > 0.75). 4 of the 24 metabolites can predict pneumoconiosis stages, which are 1,2-dioctanoylthiophosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylcholine(O-18:1/20:1), indole-3-acetamide and l-homoarginine. Kynurenine, N-tetradecanoylsphingosine 1-phosphate, 5-methoxytryptophol and phosphatidylethanolamine(22:6/18:1) displayed the potential as specific biomarkers for artificial stone silicosis. Taken together, our results confirmed that tryptophan metabolism is closely related to pneumoconiosis and may be related to disease progression. Hopefully, our results could supplement the biomarkers of pneumoconiosis and provide evidence for the discovery of artificial stone silicosis-specific biomarkers.

An analysis of contributing mining factors in coal workers\u2019 pneumoconiosis prevalence in the United States coal mines, 1986\u20132018

In the United States, an unexpected and severe increase in coal miners’ lung diseases in the late 1990s prompted researchers to investigate the causes of the disease resurgence. This study aims to scrutinize the effects of various mining parameters, including coal rank, mine size, mine operation type, coal seam height, and geographical location on the prevalence of coal worker's pneumoconiosis (CWP) in surface and underground coal mines. A comprehensive dataset was created using the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) Employment and Accident/Injury databases. The information was merged based on the mine ID by utilizing SQL data management software. A total number of 123,589 mine-year observations were included in the statistical analysis. Generalized Estimating Equation (GEE) model was used to conduct a statistical analysis on a total of 29,707, and 32,643 mine-year observations for underground and surface coal mines, respectively. The results of the econometrics approach revealed that coal workers in underground coal mines are at a greater risk of CWP comparing to those of surface coal operations. Furthermore, underground coal mines in the Appalachia and Interior regions are at a higher risk of CWP prevalence than the Western region. Surface coal mines in the Appalachian coal region are more likely to CWP development than miners in the Western region. The analysis also indicated that coal workers working in smaller mines are more vulnerable to CWP than those in large mine sizes. Furthermore, coal workers in thin-seam underground mine operations are more likely to develop CWP.

Analysis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease screening questionnaire and pulmonary function test among migrant workers exposed to dust

Objective: To analyze the application of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Screening Questionnaire and pulmonary function test in dust-exposed migrant workers. Methods: In May 2019, 149 cases of dust exposed migrant workers were selected as the research subjects through the free clinic in the countryside. COPD Screening Questionnaire and lung function test were carried out to analyze the high-risk groups and the influencing factors of positive pulmonary function test results. Results: Among 149 cases of dust-exposed migrant workers, 107 (71.8%) were positive for questionnaire screening, 73 (49.0%) were positive for pulmonary function test, 75 (50.3%) were diagnosed with coal worker's pneumoconiosis, and 101 (67.8%) were diagnosed with lung function injury. The positive rate of pulmonary function of migrant workers with positive questionnaire screening results was significantly higher than that of those with negative results (P<0.05) . The results of multivariate analysis showed that compared with non-pneumoconiosis, the risk of positive pulmonary function test results was higher in dust-exposed migrant workers with stage Ⅲ pneumoconiosis (OR=16.462, 95%CI: 3.390-79.946; P<0.01) . Compared with non-smoking, the risks of positive pulmonary function test results of dust-exposed migrant workers with smoking index of 11-20 package years and >20 package years were higher (OR=19.814, 95%CI: 3.854-101.883; OR=9.733, 95%CI: 2.310-41.008; P<0.01) . Conclusion: The risk of COPD in dust-exposed migrant workers is high, so we should strengthen the early examination of the high pneumoconiosis stage and smoking population. The screening questionnaire can better screen out the high-risk groups of COPD, and it can be used as a basic screening tool.

Kajian Pustaka: Hubungan Durasi Kerja dengan Pneumokoniosis pada Pekerja Tambang Batubara

Introduction: The International Labor Organization estimates that nearly 2.34 million workers die as a result of their work each year. About 86.23% were caused by occupational diseases. Pneumoconiosis is a disease that can be found in coal mining. Pneumoconiosis is divided into several types, including silicosis, asbestosis, mixed dust fibrosis, coal worker's pneumoconiosis (CWP), and other types (Zhang). CWP is a chronic and irreversible disease that is a public health problem. Coal with a higher combustion capacity has the greatest risk of causing CWP. Purpose: This research was conducted to review the literature on the duration of work with an increase in the incidence of CWP in coal mine workers. Method: Twenty reference sources were drawn from PubMed, ScienceDirect, ResearchGate, and Google Scholar. The articles reviewed in this report range from 2000 to 2020. Results: Most studies suggest an increase in the prevalence of CWP cases. The incidence of CWP increases with the amount of dust exposure and the long duration of work. Discussion: Subjectively, dust exposure, age, and years of service did not have a significant relationship with respiratory problems, and put more emphasis on the relationship between PPE use and smoking habits. Other effects include COPD, death, and health costs. Conclusion: The conclusion of this study states that a longer work duration increases the incidence of CWP in coal mine workers.

Kajian Pustaka: Hubungan Durasi Kerja dengan Pneumokoniosis pada Pekerja Tambang Batubara

Introduction: The International Labor Organization estimates that nearly 2.34 million workers die as a result of their work each year. About 86.23% were caused by occupational diseases. Pneumoconiosis is a disease that can be found in coal mining. Pneumoconiosis is divided into several types, including silicosis, asbestosis, mixed dust fibrosis, coal worker's pneumoconiosis (CWP), and other types (Zhang). CWP is a chronic and irreversible disease that is a public health problem. Coal with a higher combustion capacity has the greatest risk of causing CWP. Purpose: This research was conducted to review the literature on the duration of work with an increase in the incidence of CWP in coal mine workers. Method: Twenty reference sources were drawn from PubMed, ScienceDirect, ResearchGate, and Google Scholar. The articles reviewed in this report range from 2000 to 2020. Results: Most studies suggest an increase in the prevalence of CWP cases. The incidence of CWP increases with the amount of dust exposure and the long duration of work. Discussion: Subjectively, dust exposure, age, and years of service did not have a significant relationship with respiratory problems, and put more emphasis on the relationship between PPE use and smoking habits. Other effects include COPD, death, and health costs. Conclusion: The conclusion of this study states that a longer work duration increases the incidence of CWP in coal mine workers.

Epidemiological characteristics of new pneumoconiosis in different industries in Tianjin

Objective: To analyze the distribution characteristics of new pneumoconiosis in different industries in Tianjin from 2009 to 2018, in order to provide a theoretical basis for the prevention and treatment of pneumoconiosis. Methods: In November 2019, the data of new pneumoconiosis cases in Tianjin from 2009 to 2018 were collected and classified according to difference industries. The epidemiological characteristics of new pneumoconiosis in different industries were analyzed based on time, type of pneumoconiosis, type of work, age, and working age. Results: A total of 4657 new cases of pneumoconiosis were reported in Tianjin from 2009 to 2018, 4640 cases (99.63%) in the first stage, 13 cases (0.28%) in the second stage, and 4 case (0.09%) in the third stage. The number of new cases increased with time and then decreased. Among them, there were 3482 males (74.77%) and 1175 females (25.23%) . The proportion of women with new pneumoconiosis in the non-metallic mineral products industry was the highest, and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05) . There are differences in the distribution of new pneumoconiosis species in different industries (χ(2)=4920.11, P<0.05) . Silicosis is mainly distributed in non-metallic mineral products industry, metal smelting and rolling processing industry, petroleum processing coking and nuclear fuel processing industries. Foundry worker's pneumoconiosis is mainly distributed in the general equipment manufacturing industry and special equipment manufacturing industry, and cement pneumoconiosis is mainly distributed in the non-metallic mineral products industry. The types of work are mainly distributed in smelting, casting, raw materials and forming workers, and the sum of the three accounts for 36.46% (1689/4657) . The M (P(25), P(75)) of diagnosis age was 56.0 (50.0, 63.0) years, and the M (P(25), P(75)) of working age was 19.0 (16.0, 26.0) years. The working age of new pneumoconiosis patients in the petroleum processing, coking and nuclear fuel processing industries is 19.0 (16.0, 26.0) years, which is shorter than that of other industries (P<0.05) ; The diagnostic age of the general equipment manufacturing industry is 54.0 (49.0, 59.0) years, which is less than that of other industries (P<0.05) . New pneumoconiosis is mainly distributed in large and medium-sized enterprises. New cases of pneumoconiosis in non-metallic mineral products industry, metal smelting, calendar processing industry and general equipment manufacturing industry are mainly distributed in large and medium-sized enterprises. New cases of pneumoconiosis in the metal products industry, special equipment manufacturing industry and petroleum processing, coking and nuclear fuel processing industries are mainly distributed in large enterprises. Conclusion: The work of preventing and controlling pneumoconiosis in Tianjin has a long way to go. We should implement targeted measures according to the characteristics of pneumoconiosis industry, strengthen the supervision of hazard industries, and effectively control the occurrence of pneumoconiosis.

Trends in Pneumoconiosis in Brazil - 1979-2019

Background: Pneumoconiosis is a set of lung diseases related to exposure to dust in the workplace. This study evaluated the temporal and spatial distribution of mortality rates (1979-2019), and hospital admissions (1995-2019) for pneumoconiosis in Brazil to investigate the main multiple causes reported in deaths from pneumoconiosis (2006-2019) and to identify the records of pneumoconiosis in workers through the history of work accidents (1999-2018). Methods: The outcomes of this study were hospitalizations and deaths due to pneumoconiosis. 500-506 according to the ICD-9 and J60-J66 according to the ICD-10 were used. Data from this retrospective ecological study were collected from Brazilian Ministry of Health (DATASUS) and Ministry of Economy (AEAT) databases. Findings: Over the years, hospitalizations for pneumoconiosis have decreased in all regions of Brazil. Hospitalizations were predominant in men over 40 years. Regarding the data on pneumoconiosis recorded as work accidents, pneumoconiosis caused by silica dust predominated in 25 of the 27 Brazilian states. Death rates registered a temporal increase in all regions. Deaths were predominant men over 50 years. The multiple causes associated with deaths from pneumoconiosis were: septicemias (963), essential hypertension (682), heart failure (274) and diabetes mellitus (265). Interpretation: These findings reveal a disparity between the temporal behavior of hospitalization (reduction) and death (increase) rates from pneumoconiosis in Brazil and show groups more vulnerable: men, aged over 50 years and with chronic non-communicable diseases or previous infections. Funding: This study was financed in part by the Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior - Brasil (CAPES) - Finance Code 001 and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e Tecnologico – Grant 310856/2020-5. Declaration of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Epidemiological characteristics of pneumoconiosis in Gansu Province from 2010 to 2018

Objective: The epidemiological characteristics of occupational pneumoconiosis in Gansu Province from 2010 to 2018 were analyzed to provide a theoretical basis for the development of prevention and control strategies for pneumoconiosis in Gansu Province. Methods: In March 2019, the data of newly diagnosed occupational pneumoconiosis in 2010-2018 and the data of occupational pneumoconiosis as of December 31, 2018 in Gansu Province were collected by the Occupational Disease and Occupational Health Information Monitoring System. The stage, type of disease, time, enterprise information of newly diagnosed pneumoconiosis and the region, type of disease, enterprise information of existed pneumoconiosis were analyzed. Results: From 2010 to 2018, a total of 1269 new cases of occupational pneumoconiosis were reported in Gansu Province, including 818 cases (64.46%) of stage I pneumoconiosis, 284 cases (22.38%) of stage II pneumoconiosis, 167 cases (13.16%) of stage III pneumoconiosis. Silicosis, coal worker's pneumoconiosis and cement pneumoconiosis ranks the top 3, accounting for 55.71% (707/1269) , 37.67% (478/1269) and 3.78% (48/1269) of the total number, respectively. The new cases of stage III pneumoconiosis were mainly distributed in private economy (58.09%, 79/136) and small-sized (59.88%, 97/162) enterprises. As of December 31, 2018, Gansu Province had reported a total of 12211 cases of occupational pneumoconiosis, of which 58.16% (7102/12211) were coal worker's pneumoconiosis and 28.15% (3438/12211) were silicosis. Mainly distributed in Baiyin city (21.63%, 2641/12211) , Lanzhou city (17.79%, 2172/12211) and Wuwei city (13.73%, 1676/12211) . The existed cases of pneumoconiosis are mainly distributed in state-owned economy (76.95%, 9396/12211) and large-sized (54.23%, 6622/12211) enterprises. Conclusion: Silicosis and coal worker's pneumoconiosis are the main type of pneumoconiosis in Gansu Province. And the number of silicosis reported is on the rise, which should be taken seriously. Pneumoconiosis in Gansu Province is mainly distributed in state-owned economy and large-sized enterprises. However, pneumoconiosis patients in private economy and small-sized enterprise is generally serious, so it should be the focus of supervision.

Analysis of 6344 cases of hospitalized migrant workers with pneumoconiosis

Objective: To analyze the situation of hospitalized migrant workers with pneumoconiosis in Hunan Province, and to provide reference for the prevention and treatment of pneumoconiosis. Methods: In July 2019, the data of pneumoconiosis migrant workers hospitalized in Hunan Prevention and Treatment Institute for Occupational Diseases from February 2017 to February 2019 were retrospectively analyzed, and the general situation, region distribution, diagnosis and complications were analyzed. Results: From February 2017 to February 2019, a total of 6344 migrant workers with pneumoconiosis were treated, mainly distributed in Zhuzhou city (1283 cases, 20.22%) , Yiyang city (1048 cases, 16.52%) and Loudi city (783 cases, 12.34%) . Coal worker's pneumoconiosis (4242 cases, 66.87%) and silicosis (2089 cases, 32.93%) were the main types of pneumoconiosis. Among them, 1433 cases (22.59%) were in stage I, 1318 cases (20.77%) were in stage II, and 3593 cases (56.64%) were in stage III. The age of the patients was mainly between 41-60 years old (4584 cases, 72.26%) . 3869 patients (60.99%) had complications and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (3046 cases, 48.01%) and pulmonary infection (1703 cases, 26.84%) were the most common complications. There were 1510 patients (23.80%) who had two or more complications. There were significant differences in the number of complications among patients with different diagnosis stages and age stages (χ(2)=764.43, 90.24, P<0.01) . Conclusion: Coal worker's pneumoconiosis and silicosis are the main types of pneumoconiosis among hospitalized migrant workers in Hunan Province, and most patients were in stage III. Older patients with higher pneumoconiosis stage have more complications, early diagnosis and treatment should be taken.

Correlation analysis of newly diagnosed coal worker's pneumoconiosis and GDP in Hubei Province from 2006 to 2015

Objective: To analysis the distribution characteristics of coal worker's pneumoconiosis in Hubei Province during 2006-2010 (the 11th Five-Year Plan period) and 2011-2015 (the 12th Five-Year Plan period) , and its correlation with the gross domestic product (GDP) of Hubei Province from 1986 to 2015. Methods: In September 2019, the data of newly diagnosed coal worker's pneumoconiosis reported in Occupational Disease and Occupational Health Information Monitoring System from 2006 to 2015 and the GDP data from 1986 to 2015 in Hubei Province were collected. The distribution characteristics of time, region, enterprise size, industry and economic type of coal-worker's pneumoconiosis and its correlation with GDP were analyzed. Results: In 2006-2015, 3807 new cases of coal worker's pneumoconiosis were reported in Hubei Province. The time distribution generally ascended as a wave trend. The number of new cases reached its peak in 2013 (722 cases) . GDP growth continued between 1986-1995, 1996-2005 and 2006-2015, especially in 2006-2015. New cases of coal worker's pneumoconiosis were mainly distributed in Huangshi city, Yichang city and Enshi prefecture, accounting for 82.40% (3137/3807) of the total cases. The proportion of new cases in Huangshi city was higher than that in Yichang city and Enshi prefecture (χ(2)=272.66, 243.19, P<0.05) . New cases were mainly distributed in coal mining industry (3103 cases, 81.51%) , small-sized and medium (1675 cases, 44.00%) , and private enterprises (1621 cases, 42.58%) . The rank correlation (r(s)) of coal worker's pneumoconiosis in 2006-2015 with GDP in1986-1995, 1996-2005 and 2006-2015 were 0.157, 0.144, 0.200, respectively, and there were no significant differences (P>0.05) . Conclusion: The coalworker's pneumoconiosis in Hubei Province are mostly distributed in small and medium-sized private enterprises, and the regional distribution is concentrated in Huangshi city, Yichang city and Enshi prefecture. The concentration of cases is closely related to the number and energy production of local coal mines. There is no correlation between the growth of GDP and the distribution of cases.

The study on the role of extracellular histones in the pathogenesis of coal worker's pneumoconiosis

Objective: To explore the role of extracellular histones in the pathogenesis of coal worker's pneumoconiosis (CWP) , the relationship of extracellular histones in plasma with pulmonary fibrosis caused by coal mine dust was analyzed, and the stimulating effect of extracellular histones on fibroblast proliferation was studied. Methods: In May 2019, a total of 220 coal mine dust exposure workers (including coal miners and CWP patients) who visited the occupational disease outpatient department of Peking University Third Hospital from 2012 to 2015 were enrolled in the study. According to the classification of small opacity profusion (SOP) in chest radiograph for pneumoconiosis diagnosis (category 0, 1, 2, 3) , 61 coal miners were in category 0 SOP, 65 coal miners were in category 1 SOP, 56 coal miners were in category 2 SOP and 38 coal miners were in category 3 SOP. The plasma levels of extracellular histone H4 and platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit. The stimulating effects of CWP patients' plasma and calf thymus histones (CTHs) on fibroblast and the antagonizing effect of anti-H4 antibody were investigated by fibroblast proliferation experiment in vitro. Results: Among the study subjects, there were 195 males (88.6%, 195/220) and 25 females (11.4%, 25/220) , age (55.1±7.2) years, coal mine dust exposure time (16.3±4.4) years. The plasma concentrations of histone H4 in the coal miners with category 0, 1, 2 and 3 SOP were (3.92±1.75) 、(9.84±4.17) 、(14.35±5.52) and (17.83±7.69) μg/ml, respectively. There were significant differences among the four groups (P<0.01) . The plasma level of histone H4 was positively correlated with the plasma level of PDGF in the coal miners (r=0.769, P<0.01) . Compared with healthy control plasma group, the cell proliferation percentages of patients' plasma group (272%±87%) and CTH group (283%±84%) were significantly increased (P<0.05) . Compared with patients' plasma group, the cell proliferation percentage of patients' plasma+anti-H4 antibody group (185%±66%) was significantly decreased (P<0.05) . Compared with CTH group, the cell proliferation percentage of CTH+anti-H4 antibody group (167%±59%) was significantly decreased (P<0.05) . Conclusion: Extracellular histones in plasma are associated with pulmonary fibrosis in patients with CWP. Studies in vitro have shown that extracellular histones can promote proliferation of pulmonary fibroblasts. It is suggested that extracellular histones can be important biomarkers for pulmonary fibrosis caused by coal mine dust.

Distribution feature of newly diagnosed pneumoconiosis in Guangyuan City, 2007-2017

Objective: To investigate the distribution feature of newly diagnosed pneumoconiosis in Guangyuan City from 2007 to 2017 and provide scientific evidence for the prevention and control of pneumoconiosis. Methods: In May 2019, the data of newly diagnosed pneumoconiosis in Guangyuan City during January 2007 to December 2017 were collected from Chinese Information System for Disease Control and Prevention-Occupation Disease and Occupation Health Information Monitoring System. The database was built by Excel 2010. The distribution of period, disease type, region, sex, age, working age, work type and industry were analyzed by SPSS 17.0 software. Results: Totally 3920 new cases of pneumoconiosis were reported in Guangyuan City from 2007 to 2017, 2850 cases (72.70%) were in stage Ⅰ, 724 cases (18.47%) were in stage Ⅱ, and 346 cases (8.83%) were in stage Ⅲ. The main type of pneumoconiosis was coal worker＇s pneumoconiosis (2544 cases, 64.90%, ) , second was silicosis (1313 cases, 33.49%) . The newly diagnosed pneumoconiosis were mainly distributed in Lizhou area (1855 cases, 47.32%) , Wangcang county (1392 cases, 35.51%) and Cangxi county (509 cases, 12.98%) . The patients were mainly males (3910 cases, 99.74%) , the ratio of males to females was 391∶1. The average diagnostic age was (57.56±17.58) years, the average working age was (13.68±10.81) years. The main types of work were coal miner (1748 cases, 44.59%) , roadheader (1354 cases, 34.54%) and drill man (487 cases, 12.42%) . The industry distribution was mainly mining (2930 cases, 74.74%) . The distribution of enterprise sizes were mainly small and medium-sized (1341 cases, 34.21%) and micro-sized (999 cases, 25.48%) enterprises. Conclusion: The situation of prevention and control of pneumoconiosis in Guangyuan City is still severe and the newly diagnosed cases are dominated by coal worker＇s pneumoconiosis, mainly concentrated in mining. There are more cases in Lizhou area and Wangcang county. Strengthening the prevention and control of dust hazards in high-risk areas and high-risk groups is the focus of occupational health prevention and control in Guangyuan City.

CT imaging and pathological basis of linear shadow connecting pulmonary segmental artery to horizontal fissure.

To investigate the computed tomography (CT) imaging and pathological basis of the linear shadows connecting pulmonary segmental arteries to horizontal fissure (hereinafter referred to as “linear shadow”) on thin-slice CT.Collect 127 clinical cases to analyze the display and morphology of linear shadows on the thin-slice CT and to measure their length, thickness, and angle. Collect 11 autopsy specimens of coal worker's pneumoconiosis to conduct an imaging and pathology basis control study for the linear shadows.There is no correlation between the linear shadow and gender, age, and smoking history. Linear shadows are observed in 54.33% of patients. 93.33% of those linear shadows are straight lines. Generally, the lengths are less than 10 mm, the thicknesses are around 1 mm, and the scopes of angles are wide, range from acute angles to obtuse angles. The linear shadow is a banded structure consisting of loose connective tissue, small blood vessels, and small lymphatic vessels due to the visceral pleura recessed and fused into the lung.Linear shadows are intrinsic to the lung. The linear shadows consist of loose connective tissue, small blood vessels, and small lymphatic vessels.

Analysis on characteristic of patients with stage I coal worker's pneumoconiosis

Objective: To compare the clinical and imaging characteristics of patients with stage I coal worker's pneumoconiosis (CWP) . Methods: All 347 cases of coal workers' pneumoconiosis diagnosed in the Third Hospital of Peking University from January 2014 to December 2018 were included in the study. According to different working posts, the subjects were divided into three categories: mining, tunneling and mixing workers. Dust exposure duration, initial dust exposure age, diagnosis age, latency, small shadow shape and lung regions distribution in X-ray chest film of different categories of CWP patients were analyzed. Results: Among the 347 patients, 216 were mining workers (62.2%) , 77 were tunneling workers (22.2%) and 54 were mixing workers (15.6%) . The dust exposure duration of mining, tunneling and mixing workers were (14.5±7.0) , (16.3±8.2) and (19.0±8.8) years, respectively. There are statistically significant differences in dust exposure duration between different categories of workers (P<0.05) . There were no significant difference in the age of diagnosis, initial dust exposure age and the latency between different categories of workers (P>0.05) . The X-ray films of mining, tunneling and mixing workers showed small round shadow, accounting for 50.9% (110/216) , 96.1% (74/77) and 96.3% (52/54) respectively. 48.1% (104/216) of the mining workers and 38.9% (21/54) of mixing workers, the distribution of small shadow in chest X-ray films reached middle and lower lung regions, while in the 48.1% (37/77) of the tunneling workers, the distribution of small shadow in chest X-ray films reached lower lung regions. There were differences in above indicators among workers with different categories (P<0.05) . Conclusion: The dust exposure duration, the shape and the distribution of lung area on chest X-ray films are different in stage I CWP patients of different occupational categories.

Study on clinical phenotype of coal workers pneumoconiosis

Objective: To explore the clinical phenotypic characteristics of coal worker's pneumoconiosis for guiding the individualized treatment of various types of patients with coal worker's pneumoconiosis. Methods: Collect clinical data of 121 cases of coal worker's pneumoconiosis in different stages, and select 16 clinical variables (age, smoking index, years of underground dust exposure, stages of pneumoconiosis, types of work, family history, main symptoms, secondary symptoms, CAT score, imaging manifestations, FVC%, FEV(1)/FVC, FEV(1)%, DLCO%, respiratory failure complications, pulmonary heart disease complications) . Principal Component Factor Analysis (PCA) was used to analyze 16 clinical variables of 121 patients with coal worker's pneumoconiosis. Extracted 2 principal components and 8 related variables from 16 clinical variables, then coal worker's pneumoconiosis patients were divided into three types according to CCC values. Variance analysis or χ(2) test were used to analyze the characteristics of these three types of clinical data, then summarized the clinical phenotype composition ratio and clinical data characteristics. Results: The patients with coal worker's pneumoconiosis were initially divided into three types, including 73 cases (60.3%) in type 1, 18 cases (14.9%) in type 2 and 30 cases (24.8%) in type 3. Patients in type 1 are mainly middle-aged, with little damage to lung function and mild clinical symptoms, the imaging manifestations of type 1 patients are mainly diffuse nodules, and the stages of pneumoconiosis are mostly one-stage and second-stage. Patients in type 2 are mainly in middle-aged and elderly patients.the main pulmonary impairment is diffuse function decline. The clinical symptoms are severe and the imaging manifestations are complex. The stages of pneumoconiosis are one, second and third stages. Patients in type 3 are mainly middle-aged and elderly patients, with more pulmonary function impairment (decreased ventilation and diffusion) , severe clinical symptoms, complex imaging manifestations (micro nodules, emphysema, mass shadow, fibrosis) , and those pneumoconiosis stages are mainly in the second and third stages. Conclusion: According to the clinical characteristics, the patients with coal worker's pneumoconiosis were divided into 3 types by cluster analysis method, the treatment plan has certain guiding value in clinical work according to different classifications.

Analysis of the burden of coal worker's pneumoconiosis disease in a mining group

Objective: To provide scientific basis for the prevention and control of pneumoconiosis and the formulation of relevant policies, this paper discusses the loss of health life and economic loss caused by coal worker's pneumoconiosis in a mining group. Methods: From March to October 2017, 1262 cases of coal worker's pneumoconiosis were diagnosed in a mining group from 1972 to 2013. The direct and indirect economic losses are calculated by the step-by-step model method. Direct economic losses include medical expenses, one-time disability allowance, disability allowance, funeral allowance, one-time work death allowance, living and nursing expenses, food allowance, pension for supporting relatives and transportation expenses, etc. Indirect economic losses includes loss of social productivity, additional training fee for new employees, transportation fee for accompanying family members, loss of social productivity of accompanying family members, loss of production suspension and production reduction, etc. Life table method was used to calculate the loss of social productivity caused by coal worker's pneumoconiosis. Results: All 1262 coal worker's pneumoconiosis patients were male. In the stage of pneumoconiosis, 95.40% (1204/1262) of the first stage of pneumoconiosis and 42.62% (538/1262) of the seventh stage of disability. The age of diagnosis (22.02-71.33) was 47.38 years on average. 1262 coal worker's pneumoconiosis patients caused a total of 9068.54 years of health life loss, of which YLD accounted for 93.56% (8484.69/9068.54) . The loss of YLD (0.06-33.30) years in 1262 coal worker's pneumoconiosis patients was 6.70 years per capita. The total economic loss of 1262 coal workers with pneumoconiosis was 2842185447.70 yuan, with a per capita of 2252127.93 yuan. The direct economic loss accounted for 81.59% (2318990168.46/2842185447.70) , which was 4.42 times of the indirect economic loss. Among the direct economic loss per capita, medical expenses accounted for a large proportion of 50.04% (919510.84/1837551.64) . The per capita indirect economic loss is 414576.29 yuan. The loss of social productivity accounted for 56.18% (232908.95/414576.29) . Conclusion: Coal worker's pneumoconiosis causes heavy economic burden and serious loss of social productivity.

Follow-up and retrospective investigation of patients with pneumoconiosis in Jiangsu Province, China

Objective: To investigate the features, changing trend, and rules of pneumoconiosis in Jiangsu Province, China, as well as the health status of patients with pneumoconiosis. Methods: From July to October 2019, the patients with pneumoconiosis, reported up to the end of 2018 in Jiangsu Province, were enrolled as respondents, and follow-up and retrospective investigation were performed. A total of 24405 patients with pneumoconiosis were investigated, and related data were collected from the monitoring system of cause of death for residents, pneumoconiosis network reporting system, occupational disease diagnosis institution, management institutions for the reporting of occupational diseases, and related residents' committee or village committee. The patients with pneumoconiosis, who had been reported, were followed up by telephone or on-site visit to obtain the information on their conditions. A descriptive analysis was performed for age of onset, working years, sex, category of industry, type of pneumoconiosis, annual disease onset, geographic distribution, and medical security. Results: Among the 24405 patients, a male/female ratio was 16.81∶1. Of all 24405 patients, 15948 (65.35%) had stage 1 pneumoconiosis, 5289 (21.67%) had stage 2 pneumoconiosis, and 1637 (6.71%) had stage 3 pneumoconiosis. The mean working years for dust exposure was 16.25±9.95 years for all patients, and the mean working years for dust exposure was 15.80±9.95 years for patients with stage 1 pneumoconiosis, 17.82±9.80 years for patients with stage 2 pneumoconiosis, and 16.31±9.90 years for patients with stage 3 pneumoconiosis. The highest number of cases of pneumoconiosis was reported in Wuxi (5744 cases, accounting for 23.54%) , followed by Zhenjiang (4160 cases, accounting for 17.05%) , Xuzhou (3851 cases, accounting for 15.78%) , Yancheng (3340 cases, accounting for 13.69%) , and Suzhou (2948 cases, accounting for 12.08%) . Major types of pneumoconiosis included silicosis (15392 cases, accounting for 63.07%) and coal workers' pneumoconiosis (5253 cases, accounting for 21.52%) . In this survey, 21115 completed follow-up, among whom 15924 survived and 5191 died, 15924 patients with pneumoconiosis survived, among whom 7461 (46.85%) had an age of ≥70 years and 2515 (15.79%) were exposed to dust for 5-9 years. The industries involved were mainly coal mining and washing industry (5687 cases, accounting for 35.71%) and public management, social security, and social organization (3349 cases, accounting for 21.03%) ; in terms of security, 7999 patients (50.23%) were covered by occupational injury insurance, 946 (5.94%) were compensated by employers, 4537 (28.49%) were covered by basic medical insurance for urban and rural residents, 1590 (9.98%) were covered by critical illness insurance, and 5458 (34.28%) were covered by other types of social security, such as medical assistance and poverty relief. Conclusion: Silicosis and coal worker's pneumoconiosis are the key points for the prevention and treatment of pneumoconiosis in Jiangsu Province, and supervision should be strengthened for industries and regions with serious dust hazards.

Serum metabolomics in latent pneumoconiosis tuberculosis patients based on ultra performance liquid chromatography tandem quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry

Objective: To explore the non-target metabonomics of serum in worker's pneumoconiosis (CWP) patients with latent tuberculosis and the biomarkers of latent tuberculosis infection of pneumoconiosis. Methods: In December 2018, 39 CWP inpatients from a hospital in Beijing were taken as subjects. The subjects were screened for latent tuberculosis using the in vitro release test of mycobacterium tuberculosis-interferon (IGRAs) test. According to the screening results, 21 positive patients with latent tuberculosis infection were selected as the latent tuberculosis group of pneumoconiosis. While 18 negative patients with CWP alone were selected as the pneumoconiosis group. Polarity components of metabolites were analyzed by UPLC-QTOF/MS. The data was processed with Progenesis QI software for multidimensional statistical analysis. Identification of structure of differential metabolites were matched through accurate mass and secondary mass spectrum. Searching the Human Metabolome Database (HMDB) , differential metabolites were imported into MetaboAnalyst 4.0 to analyze the metabolic pathways. Results: All 42 differential metabolites were screened out. Excepted for exogenous metabolites, 14 endogenous differential metabolites were identified. Compared with the pneumoconiosis group, 6 metabolites including PC [18∶4 (6Z, 9Z, 12Z, 15Z) /P-18∶1 (11Z) ], 3-Oxododecanoyl-CoA in the latent tuberculosis group were up-regulated, while 8 metabolites including the Stearoyl-CoA, (2S) -Pristanoyl-CoA were down-regulated. These results might be related to lipid, fatty acid and arachidonic acid metabolism pathways. Conclusion: There are significant differences in serum metabonomics between the patients with latent tuberculosis of pneumoconiosis and the patients with ordinary pneumoconiosis, which provide a reference for the study of biomarkers for the diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection of pneumoconiosis.

The characteristics of spatial-temporal evolvement of pneumoconiosis in Hebei Province from 2009 to 2018

Objective: To explore the temporal and spatial characteristics of pneumoconiosis in Hebei Province from 2009 to 2018, and to provide evidence for the policy development of pneumoconiosis prevention and control. Methods: In February 2019, a database of pneumoconiosis incidence from 2009 to 2018 in Hebei Province was built. The spatial-temporal distribution of pneumoconiosis in Hebei Province was displayed based on barycenter migration technology and spatial autocorrelation analysis. Results: A total of 6099 cases of pneumoconiosis were reported in Hebei Province from 2009 to 2018, the top 5 pneumoconiosis were silicosis(4399, 72.13%) , coal worker pneumoconiosis (1298 , 21.28%) , ceramics pneumoconiosis (224, 3.67%) , welding worker's pneumoconiosis(76, 1.25%) , and casting worker's pneumoconiosis(48, 0.79%). The focus of pneumoconiosis from 2009 to 2014 moved from Tangshan in the northeast to Zhangjiakou in the northwest, and moved to Chengde in the north from 2015 to 2017, and moved back to Tangshan in 2018. The incidence of pneumoconiosis was globally autocorrelation (P <0.05) from 2009 to 2011 and 2014 to 2018. The high-high gathering areas were located in Zhangjiakou, Chengde and other areas. Conclusion: The barycenter of pneumo- coniosis in hebei province from 2009 to 2018 is relatively stable, mainly locates in the northern part of Hebei Province over the years. There is an obvious regional aggregation, and the aggregation type is mainly high-high aggregation, which indicates that relevant departments should focus on strengthening the prevention and treat- ment of aggregation areas on the basis of overall planning.