Autoimmune diseases, autoantibody status and silicosis in a cohort of 1238 workers from the artificial stone benchtop industry
The proportion of workers with detectable ANAs or ENAs was considerably higher than the 5%-9% expected in the general population. Some of the antibodies detected (eg, Scl-70, CENPB) have high sensitivity and specificity for systemic sclerosis. Long-term follow-up will be needed to estimate incidence. Rheumatologists should explore occupational history in new cases of autoimmune disease. Screening for autoimmune disease is indicated in workers exposed to RCS as these individuals need specialised management and may be entitled to compensation.
Authors
- Kathleen Morrisroe (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3840-3967)
- Karen E Walker-Bone (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5992-1459)
- Mandana Nikpour (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6585-5611)
- Hayley Barnes (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7615-4191)
- Stella May Gwini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0295-4575)
- Dunya Tomic (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2471-2523)
- Ryan Francis Hoy (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9150-9440)
- Jesselyn Sin
- Javier Jimenez Martin
- Yuan Z. Lim
Institutions
- The University of Melbourne (AU)
- St Vincent's Hospital Melbourne (AU)
- Arthritis UK (GB)
- Monash Health (AU)
- MRC Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit (GB)
- Alfred Health (AU)
- Monash University (AU)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Occupational and Environmental Medicine
- Published
- 2024-08-01
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1136/oemed-2024-109526
- Citations
- 10
- Primary Topic
- Occupational and environmental lung diseases
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 4.19
Funders
- WorkSafe Victoria
- Medical Research Council