title: Assessment of respiratory function in patients with podoconiosis.
abstract: The respiratory effects of silicate particles have never been studied in patients with podoconiosis (a lower limb silicosis). We assessed whether lung function in patients differed from that of controls in the same silica-exposed environment. We assessed lung function using portable turbine spirometers on 110 adult patients with podoconiosis and 110 controls, and compared mean percentage predicted forced expiratory volume in 1second (FEV(1)) and forced vital capacity (FVC) between these groups. Percentage predicted FEV(1) and FVC were low in both groups, but the difference between groups was not statistically significant (FEV(1) 82.24 vs. 85.32, P=0.187; FVC 70.93 vs. 73.59, P= 0.197). The mean FEV(1) of both groups was significantly lower than that of Ethiopian adults living on low-silica soil.
authors.affiliation: St George's Hospital Medical School, Cranmer Terrace, London SW17 0RE, UK.
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Morrison
authors.forename: Gail
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Davey
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004604:Elephantiasis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005002:Ethiopia; D005260:Female; D005541:Forced Expiratory Volume / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests; D012822:Silicon Dioxide / Q000633:toxicity*; D012987:Soil; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D012987:Soil; D012822:Silicon Dioxide