J Occup Environ Med. 2022 Jan 25. doi: 10.1097/JOM.0000000000002491. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To examine the risk of diseases among industrial workers with low and fractionated radiation exposures.
METHOD: 372,047 US male shipyard radiation and non-radiation workers were followed for 54 years and compared to US males using Standardized Mortality Ratio (SMR) method.
RESULTS: SMRs for both radiation and non-radiation workers had lower risks of death from all causes (0.74; 95% Confidence interval (CI) 0.74-0.75 and 0.77; 95% Cl 0.77-0.78, respectively) and from all cancers (0.92; 95% CI 0.91-0.93 and 0.90; 95% CI 0.89-0.91, respectively) compared to US males. Asbestos-related diseases including pleural cancers, mesothelioma, and asbestosis, but not lung cancers, were statistically higher in both radiation and non-radiation workers compared to the US males.
CONCLUSION: US shipyard male radiation and non-radiation workers did not show any elevated mortality risks that might be associated with radiation exposure.
PMID:35081587 | DOI:10.1097/JOM.0000000000002491
