Dangerous Dust In History
Who were the first people to realise that exposure to crystalline silica dust could bite you on the arse ?
Since the first modern investigations into Egyptian mummies in the 1970s, anthracosis and silicosis have regularly been found in mummified lungs ,observations made at the mummy foundation in the pyramid, indicated that silicosis is the oldest occupational diseases.
Ancient Greeks were familiar with lung disease in quarry workers (Hippocrates) and the fact that respirators could prevent the disease (Pliny).
Socrates was an Athenian Stone Mason who spent far to much time scratching his arse after many years of deep thought he came up with “The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.”
Silicosis is not a new disease, as the Romans recognized that respiratory problems accompanied mining work.
Gladiators were often wounded, sometimes badly, doctors had to treat them so learned about the human body.
Take a small jump forward in time to 1914 when Bramwell first described Scleroderma in a study of Scottish stone masons
Scleroderma, also known as systemic sclerosis, is a chronic systemic autoimmune disease characterised by hardening (sclero) of the skin (derma). In the more severe form, it also affects internal organs
Then in the good old U S of A
During the early 1930’s
Gauley Bridge….BOOM
The Hawks Nest Tunnel disaster was a large-scale incident of occupational silicosis as the result of the construction of the 
Hawks Nest Tunnel near Gauley Bridge
Deaths: 476 to 5,000 (estimated)
Date: 1931
Cause: occupational silicosis
Location: Gauley Bridge, West Virginia
Today crystalline silica dust is linked to many diseases apart from silicosis, the HSE in the UK does not recognise most of these conditions to be caused by workplace exposure
Workplace silica exposure can cause potentially fatal cancers and lung and kidney diseases, and may lead to arthritis and other chronic health problems. In general, the more you are exposed, the greater the risk.
Silicosis A progressive disease in which accumulation of respirable crystalline silica particles causes an inflammatory reaction in the lung, leading to lung damage and scarring and, in some cases, progresses to complications resulting in disability and death. Silicosis is a UK government-recognised prescribed industrial disease. Silicosis can be complicated by bacterial infections including pulmonary tuberculosis(silicotuberculosis).
Lung and other cancers HSE accepts silica exposure is responsible for several hundred lung cancer deaths in the UK each year. Silica-related lung cancer is a UK government-recognised prescribed industrial disease. TheInternational Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) notes: “Crystalline silica in the form of quartz or cristobalite dust is carcinogenic to humans (Group 1).” In the US, the safety regulator acknowledges the lung cancer association and says there is more limited evidence of associations with laryngeal, stomach and oesophageal cancers.
Lung and other cancers HSE accepts silica exposure is responsible for several hundred lung cancer deaths in the UK each year. Silica-related lung cancer is a UK government-recognised prescribed industrial disease. TheInternational Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) notes: “Crystalline silica in the form of quartz or cristobalite dust is carcinogenic to humans (Group 1).” In the US, the safety regulator acknowledges the lung cancer association and says there is more limited evidence of associations with laryngeal, stomach and oesophageal cancers.
Other respiratory diseases HSE and other regulatory agencies includingOSHA accept silica exposure can cause chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and impaired lung function, with affected workers frequently diagnosed with work-related emphysema or chronic bronchitis.
Renal and autoimmune diseases HSE publications acknowledge the link between kidney disease and silica exposure. According to the US regulator OSHA: “There is also suggestive evidence that silica can increase the risk of rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases. In fact, an autoimmune mechanism has been postulated for some silica-associated renal disease.” It adds: “OSHA preliminarily concludes that there is substantial evidence that silica exposure increases the risks of renal and autoimmune disease.” Renal diseasecaused by silica exposures can be deadly. Studies have linked silica exposure at work to sarcoidosis andscleroderma.
Stonemason’s systemic vasculitis
John Main and Caroline Wroe The James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough, UK
Keywords: silica; stonemasons; systemic vasculitis
Introduction
There is an established link between silica exposure and the development of systemic vasculitis. There is no clear quantification of the risk of exposure, or how to protect workers against it. We report three cases of systemic vasculitis from similar workplaces and a dilemma relating to the son of one of the cases.
If you would prefer not to be bitten on the arse by any of these preventable conditions
