Safety and Health at Work Vol. 13 Supplement 2022
Investigating Adverse Respiratory Health Effects After a Major Disaster: the World Trade Center Experience
Dublin Core
Title
Safety and Health at Work Vol. 13 Supplement 2022
Investigating Adverse Respiratory Health Effects After a Major Disaster: the World Trade Center Experience
Investigating Adverse Respiratory Health Effects After a Major Disaster: the World Trade Center Experience
Subject
Investigating Adverse Respiratory Health Effects, Major Disaster: the World Trade Center Experience
Description
Introduction: Workers and volunteers participating in the recovery, rescue, and service restoration at the World Trade Center (WTC) disaster site in 2001-2002 were exposed to a poorly characterized mix of inhaled toxicants. We outline our approach to move from symptom reports to the objective assessment of the adverse respiratory health outcomes (ARHO) and their predictors.
Materials and Methods: After initial clinical descriptions, we created the WTC Chest CT Imaging Archive with more than 3500 chest CT scan studies in w 1700 WTC workers. We systematically assessed imaging abnormalities, have performed studies of longitudinal lung function trajectories and evaluated their predictors.
Results: The WTC occupational cohorts are predominantly male, and overweight/obese (w85% prevalence for both). A clinical case series demonstrated lower and upper respiratory and gastroesophageal reflux disease diagnoses, with extensive comorbidity among themselves and with psychiatric diagnoses. Low forced vital capacity clearly emerged as the most frequent spirometric abnormality. An examination of chest CT scans in the Archive revealed abnormalities not previously reported by clinical radiological readings. Longitudinal analyses demonstrated quantitative CT imaging indicators associated with accelerated lung function trajectory. Those analyses also established that besides empiric high WTC exposure indicators, obesity and weight gain are important predictors of worse respiratory outcomes.
Conclusions: Systematic classic and novel approaches are needed in
episodes of acute and chronic exposures, to characterize resulting ARHO.
Materials and Methods: After initial clinical descriptions, we created the WTC Chest CT Imaging Archive with more than 3500 chest CT scan studies in w 1700 WTC workers. We systematically assessed imaging abnormalities, have performed studies of longitudinal lung function trajectories and evaluated their predictors.
Results: The WTC occupational cohorts are predominantly male, and overweight/obese (w85% prevalence for both). A clinical case series demonstrated lower and upper respiratory and gastroesophageal reflux disease diagnoses, with extensive comorbidity among themselves and with psychiatric diagnoses. Low forced vital capacity clearly emerged as the most frequent spirometric abnormality. An examination of chest CT scans in the Archive revealed abnormalities not previously reported by clinical radiological readings. Longitudinal analyses demonstrated quantitative CT imaging indicators associated with accelerated lung function trajectory. Those analyses also established that besides empiric high WTC exposure indicators, obesity and weight gain are important predictors of worse respiratory outcomes.
Conclusions: Systematic classic and novel approaches are needed in
episodes of acute and chronic exposures, to characterize resulting ARHO.
Creator
Rafael E. de la Hoz
Publisher
Elsevier Korea LLC
Date
January 2022
Contributor
Sri Wahyuni
Format
PDF
Language
English
Type
Text
Coverage
Safety and Health at Work Vol. 13 Supplement 2022
Files
Citation
Rafael E. de la Hoz, “Safety and Health at Work Vol. 13 Supplement 2022
Investigating Adverse Respiratory Health Effects After a Major Disaster: the World Trade Center Experience,” Repository Horizon University Indonesia, accessed April 19, 2025, https://repository.horizon.ac.id/items/show/2488.
Investigating Adverse Respiratory Health Effects After a Major Disaster: the World Trade Center Experience,” Repository Horizon University Indonesia, accessed April 19, 2025, https://repository.horizon.ac.id/items/show/2488.