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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Long-term effect of arsenic exposure: Results from an occupational cohort study

Pietro CombaMarco CervinoMaria BlettnerAntonella BruniCristina MangiaMaurizio PortaluriRoberta PirastuMariangela VigottiEmilio Antonio Luca GianicoloEmilio Antonio Luca GianicoloAnnibale Biggeri

subject

Lung Neoplasmsindustrial accidentOil and Gas Industrychemistry.chemical_elementCohort Studiespetrochemical plant03 medical and health sciencesOccupational Cohort0302 clinical medicineCause of DeathNeoplasmsOccupational ExposureEnvironmental healthmedicineAccidents OccupationalHumansTerm effect030212 general & internal medicineLung cancerARSENIC EXPOSUREArsenicAir Pollutantsbusiness.industryPublic Health Environmental and Occupational Healtharsenicmedicine.disease030210 environmental & occupational healthConfidence intervalOccupational Diseasesepidemiology of disasterslung cancerItalychemistryCohortbusiness

description

Background In 1976 in Manfredonia (Italy), arsenic was released into the atmosphere due to an accident in a petrochemical plant. We aimed to analyze the mortality of workers involved in the factory for the site cleaning activities. Methods The cohort consisted of 1467 workers grouped into contract, fertilizer, and plastic workers. The outcome of interest was mortality for specific causes. Standardized mortality ratios (SMR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) were computed. Results For all workers and all causes of death combined, the SMR was less than 1.0. Mortality ratios were increased for malignant neoplasms of the pleura, bone and melanoma of the skin. Contract workers, the group mostly exposed to arsenic, showed statistically significant SMRs for several malignancies, in particular for lung cancer (SMR = 1.26; 95%CI: 1.05-1.54). Conclusions Overall, the results reported here on mortality among persons occupationally exposed to arsenic are consistent with the literature and biologically plausible.

yearjournalcountryeditionlanguage
2018-12-10
10.1002/ajim.22939https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ajim.22939