title: Respiratory disorders in aluminum smelter workers.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Summarizing the knowledge status, including the morphology, possible etiological factors, and clinical expression of aluminum potroom asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease related to aluminum potroom exposure.
  
  
  METHODS
  A review of the literature from the last two decades as it appears in PubMed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There is substantial evidence for the existence of potroom asthma, although the incidence seems to decline over the last 10 years. Increased mortality from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and longitudinal decline in forced expiratory volume in the first second of expiration has been shown in aluminum potroom workers. Morphological manifestations in bronchial biopsies and the inflammatory markers NO and eosinophils in airway tissue and blood are consistent with asthma in general. The causative agent(s) is (are) not known.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Reduction of exposure and cessation of smoking seem to be the major preventive measures to avoid respiratory disorders in the aluminum industry.
authors.affiliation: From the Department of Respiratory Medicine (Dr Kongerud), Rikshospitalet, Oslo University Hospital; Faculty of Medicine (Drs Kongerud and Søyseth), University of Oslo; and Department of Respiratory Medicine (Dr Søyseth), Akershus University Hospital, Loerenskog, Norway.
authors.forename: Johny
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kongerud
authors.forename: Vidar
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Søyseth
mesh_terms: D000535:Aluminum; D059366:Asthma, Occupational / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D003371:Cough / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D004417:Dyspnea / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008669:Metallurgy; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D011379:Prognosis; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests; D012135:Respiratory Sounds / Q000209:etiology
chemical_list: D000535:Aluminum