Mortality among men employed between 1943 and 1947 at a uranium-processing plant
Mortality is described in a cohort of 18,869 white males who were employed between 1943 and 1947 at a uranium conversion and enrichment plant in Oak Ridge, Tenn. Workers in certain departments (especially chemical workers) were exposed to high average air levels of uranium dust. Based on deaths reported in 1974 by the Social Security Administration (SSA) and using mortality rates for US white males, standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) for various causes in the entire cohort were generally less than 1.00. After correction for unascertained deaths and missing death certificates, the SMR for lung cancer was 1.22 (95% confidence limits, 1.10 and 1.36). SMRs for various causes, including lung cancer, did not tend to be higher in 8,345 workers employed in areas where uranium dust was present or in 4,008 of these 8,345 workers employed for one year or longer at the plant. Other causes of particular interest (i.e., bone cancer, leukemia, diseases of respiratory and genitourinary systems) did not exhibit high SMRs. The suggestive finding of the authors was an increased number of lung cancer deaths in a group of chemical workers hired at greater than or equal to 45 years of age. Continued follow-up of the cohort is necessary for further evaluation of the long-term health effects of exposure to uranium.
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge Associated Univ., TN
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC05-760R00033
- OSTI ID:
- 6355016
- Journal Information:
- J. Occup. Med.; (United States), Vol. 23:3
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
ORE PROCESSING
HEALTH HAZARDS
URANIUM
TOXICITY
AIR QUALITY
DUSTS
EPIDEMIOLOGY
INHALATION
LUNGS
MORTALITY
NEOPLASMS
OAK RIDGE
OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY
ORE ENRICHMENT
PERSONNEL
RADIATION DOSES
TIME DEPENDENCE
WORKING CONDITIONS
ACTINIDES
BODY
DISEASES
DOSES
ELEMENTS
ENRICHMENT
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
HAZARDS
INTAKE
METALS
NORTH AMERICA
ORGANS
PROCESSING
RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
SAFETY
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SOUTHEAST REGION
TENNESSEE
USA
560161* - Radionuclide Effects
Kinetics
& Toxicology- Man
054000 - Nuclear Fuels- Health & Safety