People who work in the cosmetic industry and soldiers could risk damage to their lungs from substances they work with, a major European conference was being told today.
Soldiers’ lungs may be affected from using small arms, researchers report.
And workers involved in manufacturing cosmetics may risk developing asthma from exposure to a powder called argan, the conference of the European Lung Foundation in Barcelona, Spain, will hear.
The risk from cosmetic substances comes from a study of nine workers in a factory. Researchers found that four of them had symptoms of asthma or of rhinitis<!runny nose> while handling the powder.
Researcher Dr Emmanuelle Penven said: "Occupational asthma can be a debilitating condition if it prevents a person from working. This study is very preliminary but does suggest an association between argan powder and occupational asthma.
"Our initial findings warrant further research to understand any health risks associated with the compound."
The second study was conducted in Norway and involved 55 non-smoking male soldiers.
Researchers conducted lung function tests before and after they spent time on a shooting range.
The study showed the men had lost an average of 7% of lung function 24 hours after shooting.
Researcher Anne-Katrine Borander, of the Oslo University Hospital, said: “The findings from our small sample show that fumes from military arms are causing a decline in lung function shortly after firing practice.
“These lung function changes are comparable to the effects caused by other occupational risk factors, such as organic dusts in farming and cotton workers.
"Although we noticed this decline for all types of ammunition, further research can now be undertaken to look at specific exposure components to help design better ammunition, and to continue implementation of other measures for avoiding these effects.”
* Video clips could be used to monitor patients with TB to ensure they take their medication, British doctors are set to tell the conference.
The idea has been tested at the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust and involved nine patients. Researchers say that telemedicine could be used to monitor TB patients.
Leave a Reply