Cellular profile of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid in Turkish miners

• Published in: Postgraduate medical journal Vol. 79; no. 935; pp. 527 - 530
• Main Authors: Kayacan, O, Beder, S, Karnak, D
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London The Fellowship of Postgraduate Medicine 01.09.2003; BMJ; BMJ Publishing Group Ltd; Oxford University Press; BMJ Group
• Subjects: Adult; Alveolitis; BAL; Biological and medical sciences; Bronchoalveolar lavage; bronchoalveolar lavage fluid; Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid - cytology; Bronchoscopy; Bronchoscopy - methods; Causes of; Cell Count; cellular component; Chemical and industrial products toxicology. Toxic occupational diseases; Dust; Evaluation; FEV1; Forced Expiratory Volume - physiology; forced expiratory volume in the first second; forced vital capacity; FVC; Health aspects; Humans; Inorganic dusts (pneumoconiosises) and organic dusts (byssinosis etc.); Lavage; Lung diseases; Lymphocytes - pathology; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Mine sweepers; miners; Mining; Original; PMF; Pneumoconiosis; Pneumoconiosis - epidemiology; Pneumoconiosis - pathology; Pneumoconiosis - physiopathology; progressive massive fibrosis; Pulmonary Fibrosis - epidemiology; Pulmonary Fibrosis - pathology; Pulmonary Fibrosis - physiopathology; Statistics; Toxicology; Tropical medicine; Turkey - epidemiology; Vital Capacity - physiology; Asia; Turkey; Human; Lung disease; Pneumoconiosis; Respiratory disease; Fluid; Inflammation; Epidemiology; Bronchoalveolar lavage; Pulmonary alveolus; Diagnosis; Underground mining; Minor; Occupational medicine; Public health
• ISSN: 0032-5473; 1469-0756
• DOI: 10.1136/pmj.79.935.527

Pneumoconiosis is still a health problem in Turkey and has a relatively high incidence. Retired underground miners were investigated to document alveolitis, and to observe the difference in the cellular profiles of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid with or without pneumoconiosis. Twenty nine retired male miners and 17 controls, eight non-smokers (four male, four female) and nine smokers (six male, three female), without any dust exposure were evaluated. According to the International Labor Office 1980 classification system, the miners were allocated to three subgroups: eight without pneumoconiosis, 11 with simple pneumoconiosis, and 10 with progressive massive fibrosis (PMF). Spirometric tests and arterial blood gases analysis were done and fibreoptic bronchoscopy and BAL were performed in all subjects. The study and the control subjects were comparable in respect to age, smoking habits, except the non-smoker controls, and the duration of dust exposure, except the controls. The amount of recovered BAL fluid was lower in all miners compared with the non-smoker controls (p<0.05). The amount of recovered BAL fluid and the total cell count correlated significantly (r = 0.48, p<0.01). The percentage of lymphocytes in the BAL fluid of miners without pneumoconiosis and with PMF (p<0.05) and that of simple pneumoconiosis (p<0.01) was significantly lower compared with the non-smoker controls. Alveolitis was not a representative feature of Turkish subjects with an occupational history of underground mining, and BAL fluid cellular profile did not seem to be different in miners with or without pneumoconiosis.