Occupational Contribution to the Burden of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Objective: As a past recipient of the Jean Spencer Felton Award for Excellence in Scientific Writing from the Western Occupational and Environmental Medicine Association, it is truly an honor to contribute to this festschrift. What stands out in my mind about Dr Felton is that he loved to delve into...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of occupational and environmental medicine 2005-02, Vol.47 (2), p.154-160
Main Author: Balmes, John R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
Chronic illnesses
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma
Disease
Humans
Lungs
Medical sciences
Occupational diseases
Occupational Diseases - epidemiology
Occupational Diseases - etiology
Occupational Diseases - prevention & control
Occupational Exposure - adverse effects
Occupational health
ORIGINAL ARTICLES
Pneumology
Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive - epidemiology
Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive - etiology
Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive - prevention & control
Risk Factors
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Summary:Objective: As a past recipient of the Jean Spencer Felton Award for Excellence in Scientific Writing from the Western Occupational and Environmental Medicine Association, it is truly an honor to contribute to this festschrift. What stands out in my mind about Dr Felton is that he loved to delve into the history of occupational medicine and tried to apply the lessons ofthat history to the modern practice of the discipline. He once wrote that "The name Ramazzini marks the beginning of society's concern with the well-being and physical and emotional health of its workers from the shops of the crafts to the offices of the executives." This review of a common disease for which an occupational contribution is too frequently ignored is offered in the spirit of both the father of modern occupational medicine and one of his 20th-century acolytes. Conclusions: The biological plausibility of the capacity of occupational exposures to irritating dusts, gases, and fumes to cause chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is high. Epidemiological evidence from both worker cohort and community studies supports an increased risk of COPD associated with such exposures. The occupational contribution to the burden of COPD is sufficiently great that preventive interventions are warranted.
ISSN:1076-2752
1536-5948
DOI:10.1097/01.jom.0000152923.07801.e1