Radiologist reports surge in black-lung disease among coal miners in Eastern Kentucky - Entrepreneur Generations

Progressive massive fibrosis in underground miners
with more than 25 years experience (Coal Workers’
Health Surveillance Program, Ky.,Va.,W.Va,1974–2015)

An Eastern Kentucky radiologist in June contacted the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health to report a surge in black-lung disease in the coal-mining area, says a report by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The radiologist, who was not named, said 60 active or former coal mining patients examined in Pike County from Jan. 1, 2015 to Aug. 17, 2016 had radiographic findings consistent with progressive massive fibrosis, the most progressive form of black lung.

Of the 60 patients, 48 live in Kentucky's Floyd, Knott, Letcher, and Pike counties, which are in the Central Appalachian coalfield. Among the other patients, eight also were from Kentucky and four from out of state. The average age of patients was 60 years and the average tenure in coal mining was 29 years.

The report did not identify the mining practices that led to the 60 miners having black lung, but slope mining and the economy were suggested as possible reasons for an increase in cases, Bill Estep reports for the Lexington Herald-Leader.

Slope mining "involves using a continuous mining machine to cut through hundreds of feet of sandstone to reach coal seams, the report said," Estep writes. "Sandstone in Eastern Kentucky contains a high level of quartz, so slope mining could expose miners to hazardous dust with a high concentration of breathable crystalline silica, the report said."

It also was suggested that "many miners didn’t seek examinations for the disease early in their careers for fear of losing a job or not being able to get a job, but have come forward more recently because the region has lost thousands of coal jobs and the miners are getting tested in order to seek benefits," Estep writes.

from The Rural Blog http://ift.tt/2hseIAc Radiologist reports surge in black-lung disease among coal miners in Eastern Kentucky - Entrepreneur Generations

Posted by Entrepreneur Generations

Tweet