Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40404863›Full record

ArticleInternational archives of occupational and environmental health2025

Cumulative asbestos exposure as a key predictor of long-term pleuropulmonary outcomes: insights from decades of follow-up.

Ladislav Štěpánek, Marie Nakládalová, Magdaléna Janošíková, Lubomír Štěpánek, Alena Boriková

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in International archives of occupational and environmental health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

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0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Ladislav ŠtěpánekDepartment of Occupational Medicine, University Hospital Olomouc and Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacký University Olomouc, Zdravotníků 248/7, Olomouc, 77900, Czech Republic. ladislav.stepanek@upol.cz.ORCID 0000-0002-7261-1412
Marie NakládalováDepartment of Occupational Medicine, University Hospital Olomouc and Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacký University Olomouc, Zdravotníků 248/7, Olomouc, 77900, Czech Republic.ORCID 0000-0002-7766-3158
Magdaléna JanošíkováDepartment of Occupational Medicine, University Hospital Olomouc and Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacký University Olomouc, Zdravotníků 248/7, Olomouc, 77900, Czech Republic.ORCID 0000-0002-1210-9906
Lubomír ŠtěpánekInstitute of Biophysics and Informatics, First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, Salmovská 1, Prague, 12000, Czech Republic.ORCID 0000-0002-8308-4304
Alena BorikováDepartment of Occupational Medicine, University Hospital Olomouc and Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacký University Olomouc, Zdravotníků 248/7, Olomouc, 77900, Czech Republic.ORCID 0000-0003-0871-4350

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeOccupational asbestos exposure was widespread before regulatory bans, and it remains a risk during renovations or demolitions of older buildings. While asbestos-related diseases are well-documented, less is known about minor radiological changes in exposed individuals. This longitudinal study aimed to identify predictors of pleural and parenchymal lung disorders in individuals with previous occupational asbestos exposure, focusing on both established asbestos-related diseases and minor radiological abnormalities.

methodsThe study tracked 445 former employees (334 men, 111 women) of two Czech asbestos-processing plants, who underwent regular examinations from the 1980s to December 2022. Cox proportional hazards regression models were employed to analyse predictors of asbestos-related diseases, as well as minor radiological findings alone.

resultsOver a median latency of 37 years, 127 participants (28.5%) developed asbestos-related diseases, mainly pleural mesothelioma (59 cases). An additional 168 participants (37.8%) exhibited minor radiological findings, predominantly pleural plaques (129 cases), while 150 (33.7%) had no abnormalities. Substantial cumulative exposure was a strong predictor for minor radiological findings (odds ratio [OR] 1.98, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.18-3.35, p = 0.010) and any endpoint, including diseases (OR 1.89, 95% CI 1.18-3.02, p = 0.008). Respiratory symptoms and impaired spirometry results significantly increased the likelihood of endpoint occurrence. No significant differences emerged between settings with predominantly chrysotile exposure and those with a chrysotile-crocidolite mixture.

conclusionThis study highlights the predictive value of cumulative exposure and the need for ongoing surveillance of occupationally exposed individuals to better understand radiological changes, their significance, and to refine risk assessment models.

Indexed as

AsbestosAsbestosisOccupational DiseasesOccupational ExposureAdultAgedCzech RepublicFemaleFollow-Up StudiesHumansLongitudinal StudiesMaleMiddle AgedPleural NeoplasmsProportional Hazards ModelsAsbestosAsbestosExposureLatencyPleural mesotheliomaRadiological changes

Identifiers

PMID40404863
PMCPMC12331824

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.