Since the late 1800’s Asbestos has been mined & used commercially. The use of Asbestos dramatically increased during World War II & since the early 1940’s millions of Americans have been exposed to asbestos dust working within industries where initally the risks were not known. There has been widespread exposure to Asbestos by workers within shipyards, mines & mills, producers of asbestos products, workers in the heating & construction industries, & other tradespeople & an increase risk of deveolping mesothelioma has been the result. .
Today, the U.S. Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) sets limits for acceptable levels of asbestos exposure in the workplace. By contrast, the British Government’s Health & Safety executive (HSE) states formally that any threshold for mesothelioma must be at a low level & it is widely agreed that if any such threshold does exists at all, then it cannot currently be quantified. For practical purposes, therefore, HSE does not assume that any such threshold exists. People who work with asbestos wear personal protective equipment to lower their risk of exposure.
The risk of asbestos-related disease increases with heavier exposure to asbestos & longer exposure time. However, some individuals with only brief exposures have developed mesothelioma. On the other hand, not all workers who’re heavily exposed create asbestos-related diseases. relatives members & others living with asbestos workers have an increased risk of creating mesothelioma, & possibly other asbestos-related diseases. This risk may be the result of exposure to asbestos dust brought home on the clothing & hair of asbestos workers.
To reduce the chance of exposing relatives members to asbestos fibers, asbestos workers are usually required to shower & modify their clothing before leaving the workplace.
there’s no curative treatment. Close monitoring (routine X-rays or even pleural biopsy) for mesothelioma is mandated. Oxygen therapy at home is often necessary to relieve the shortness of breath. Supportive treatment of symptoms includes respiratory treatments to remove secretions from the lungs by postural drainage, chest percussion, & vibration. Aerosol medications to thin secretions may be prescribed
The combination of smoking & asbestos exposure significantly increases a person’s risk of creating cancer of the air passageways in the lung. The Kent brand of cigarettes used asbestos in its filters for the first few years of production in the 1950s & some cases of mesothelioma have resulted. Smoking current cigarettes does not appear to increase the risk of mesothelioma.