Report of the Special Committee on Asbestosis, Quebec Workers' Compensation Commission (1978)

This report came from a special committee of medical specialists created by Québec's Commission des accidents du travail. The committee reviewed the medical files and chest X-rays of 6,785 workers in Québec's asbestos mines and mills between October 1975 and December 1976. The report does not name the type of asbestos fibre. Of the 6,785 workers, 1,412 (21%) had abnormal X-rays, and 435 (6.41%) had images compatible with asbestosis. These 435 were found almost exclusively in workers with more than 20 years of exposure. After further examination, 161 workers (2.37% of all files) were established as having asbestosis. They were refused the medical certificate required to keep working; 6,624 certificates were issued. Among the 6,785 workers, 21.2% reported shortness of breath and two lung cancers were detected. No mesothelioma was suspected. The committee stated the study had been useful for checking the workers' lung health and for issuing certificates. The Minister's covering letter stressed that the study described one moment in time. It did not address the effect of prolonged exposure, the admissible exposure level, or the links between smoking and asbestosis and between asbestos and cancer.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

From J-M's medical library

This copy comes from the Johns-Manville medical library. It was among the papers J-M kept in its medical library without an index entry.