Abstract
Key industry data regarding harm from chronically inhaled fluoride have been unavailable publicly for decades. Recent unveiling of unpublished reports reveals three examples of data mishandling that disguised the need for more stringent occupational standards for particulate and gaseous fluorides and fluorine. Injury reports from workers handling chemicals show that unjustifiable reductions of injury and disability numbers in the process of publication shifted concern from respiratory to mineralized tissue damage. Selective editing and data omissions allowed bias that fluoride reduces caries without detrimental effects. Finally, industry’s failure to publish an important industry-funded laboratory study buried knowledge of low thresholds for fluoride-induced lung disease. Data from that study are presented to clarify the dose- and duration-dependent changes caused by chronic inhalation of calcium fluoride.
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[Hydrofluoric acid injury analysis on the health of workers].
Objective: To analyze the damage caused by hydrofluoric acid to the health of operating workers and to explore health monitoring indicators. Method: Occupational health examinations were carried out on 536 hydrofluoric acid operating workers from the etching process at a certain factory, and 256 persons in the control group. Results: Among the
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A longitudinal study of respiratory symptoms in aluminum potroom workers
The influence of occupational work exposure and host factors on the incidence of dyspnea and wheezing as reported in questionnaires was examined in 1,301 new employees in aluminum electrolytic potrooms. The incidence appeared to decrease after 2 yr of exposure, and the estimated probability of development of symptoms was nearly
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Exposure to fluoride in smelter workers in a primary aluminum industry in India
BACKGROUND: Fluoride is used increasingly in a variety of industries in India. Emission of fluoride dust and fumes from the smelters of primary aluminum producing industries is dissipated in the work environment and poses occupational health hazards. OBJECTIVE: To study the prevalence of health complaints and its association with fluoride level
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Inflammatory markers in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid from human volunteers 2 hours after hydrogen fluoride exposure
Fluoride has been in focus as a possible causal agent for respiratory symptoms amongst aluminium potroom workers for several decades. Previously, using bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL), we demonstrated airway inflammation in healthy volunteers 24 hours after exposure to hydrogen fluoride (HF). The objective of the present study was to examine early
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Comparison of first, last, and longest-held jobs as surrogates for all jobs in estimating cumulative exposure in cross-sectional studies of work-related asthma
BACKGROUND: Previous occupational studies have used exposure in most recent job as a surrogate for all jobs or "total work history" exposure. This method may not be valid for diseases in which disability brought on by one job may influence later work history, such as asthma. We investigated different surrogates
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Respiratory Risks from Occupational Fluoride Exposure
Starting in the 1930s, scientists have observed that workers exposed to airborne fluorides suffer from an elevated rate of respiratory disorders. For over 50 years, however, US government and industry scientists made repeated assurances that the allowable level of fluoride dusts and gases in industrial workplaces would not cause any
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Fluoride Enhances Toxicity of Beryllium
Occupational exposure to beryllium is well-documented to put workers' health at risk. The two principal targets of beryllium poisoning are the respiratory system and the skin. Of all beryllium compounds, beryllium fluoride complexes (including beryllium fluoride and beryllium oxyfluoride) appear to be the most toxic. As shown below, studies dating back
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