EVALUATION OF WORKERS EXPOSED TO DUST CONTAINING HARD METALS AND ALUMINUM-OXIDE

Background Fourteen workers exposed to hard metals and aluminum oxide were evaluated. Methods Six heavily exposed workers underwent bronchos copy and bronchoalveolar lavage, and five workers underwent transbronc hial biopsy. Results Microchemical analysis of transbronchial biopsies skewed a high lung burden of exogenous particles, especially metals r elated to their hard metals exposure. Lung tissue and cellular changes , which were associated with exposure to hard metal and aluminum oxide , corresponded well with the microanalytic test results. Conclusions T hree workers had at biopsy diffuse interstitial inflammatory changes: two of them were asymptomatic with normal chest X-ray films, and one h ad clinically evident disease with severe giant cell inflammation. Two other workers showed focal inflammation. The worker showing clinical disease and one asymptomatic worker with interstitial inflammatory cha nges had elevated bronchoalveolar lavage fluid-eosinophilia counts. Th ese two were father (with clinical disease) and son (asymptomatic). (C ) 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.