The article "Silicosis: The Forgotten Cousin of Asbestosis and Mesothelioma" is about cancer, it has been written by Robert Short.
Silicosis, Mesothelioma and Asbestosis are all three occupational related cancers that are preventable.Silicosis is a respiratory disease caused by the inahlation of silica dust, which leads to inflammation and scarring of the lung tissue.
Similar to Mesothelioma and Asbestosis, Silicosis silently caused mililons of industry related health issues and deaths before it was discovered and could be properly diagnosed.The main cause of Silicosis is long-term exposure to silica. Silica is a common, naturally occurring crsytal. It is found in most rock beds and forms dust druing mining, quarrying, tunneling, construction and work with many metal ores. Silica is a main component of sand, so glass workers, sand-blasters and construction laborers also receive heavy expsoure to silica.Risk factors for Silicosis include but are not limited to any work that includes exposure to silica dust.
Mining, stone and cocnrete cutting, quarrying, road and building construction, work with abrasives manufacturing, sand blasting and many other occupations and hobbies involve exposure to silica.Intense exposure to silica may result in symptoms of or full blown Silicosis in a year or less, but it usually takes at least 10 or 15 years of exposure before most symptoms of Silicosis develop.
Silicosis as well as Mesothelioma and Asbestosis have becmoe less common for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) instituted laws and regulations requiring the use of protective equipment, to be provided by employers, that limit the amount of a worker’s hazardous material exposure.
Now, in most cases, it is legally and lawfully the responsibility of your employer to protect you by providing persnoal protection equipment (PPE).The three different types of Silicosis are:* Acute Silicosis -- results from short-term exposure to very large amounts of silica. The lungs become very inflamed and may fill with fluid, casuing severe shortness of breath and low blood oxygen levels.* Accelerated Silicosis -- occurs after exposure to larger amounts of silica over a shorter period of time (5 - 15 years). Inflammation, scarring, and symptoms progress faster in accelerated silicosis than in simple silicosis.* Simple chronic silicosis -- results from long-term exposrue (more than 20 years) to low amounts of silica dust.
Nodlues of chronic inflammation and scarring provoked by the silica dust form in the lungs and chest lymph nodes.
This disease may feature breathlessness and may resemble chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).If you feel that you are in an industry with a high risk of exposure to silica dust, or any other hazardous material, you should take it upon yourself to use every method necessary to protect yourself from exposure.
It is important to discuss any health concerns that you may have with your empolyer and have your employer provide you with the personal protective equipment required by law to minimize your exposure to hazardous materials such as silica. It is legally your employer’s responsibility to provide you with safety devices that will protect you but it is ultimately your responsibility to protect your health and the health of your family.If your empolyer is lax or refuses to provide for your safety, it is important that you contact your local, state or federal agency that oversees health and safety law and compliance to report it right away. In most situations you can report any negligence anonymously to prevent being singled out and demoted or fired by your employer.
Many times your employer will be forced to comply with the laws by the governing aegncy and your troubles will be solved. As an employer myself, I see the need to protect my employees at any cost cause they are not only my most valued assets they are human being with families and simply deserve to live and work in the safest environment possible. If your employer does not feel that way, you should not feel one bit of remorse if you have to report abuse to the proper authorities.If you feel that you have been negligently exposed to Silica, or any otehr hazardous material and are at that moment experiencing health related issues from it, you should contact a competent lawyer or law office immediately and discuss your situation with them.
You may be entitled to compensation due to your employer’s ngeligence. There are lawyers and attorneys that specailize in Silicosis, Mesothelioma, Asbestosis and a vast array of other occupational health related diseases.© Copyright 2005 Affordable Concrete Cutting, Inc.Robert Short is a professional concrete cutter, seasoned article writer and an expert on search engine optimization and linking. He is responsible for ranking our local service company’s website at number one on all mjaor search engines for more than a dozen keyword terms.
Viist our website for more articles on linking and webmaster resources at http://www.Affordableconcretecutting.Com/construction_seo.Html.
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