Health effects studies related to occupational and environmental exposure

This paper describes adverse health effect studies conducted at the Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health since its foundation fifty years ago to the present day. The presentation of the studied problems is based mainly on the type of exposure--occupational or environmental--and partly on disease entities. The review is organised around the following topics: metals, organic solvents, and other organic chemicals, pneumoconioses and occupational pneumopathies, bronchial asthma and nonallergic bronchoconstrictive impairments, chronic nonspecific lung disease, studies of respiratory effects of exposure to air pollutants in schoolchildren, other problems concerned with pathology of work and workers' health protection, epidemiology of chronic noncommunicable diseases in general population groups, criteria for the assessment of disability and ability to work. The review concludes with a short description of achievements at the national and international level, and gives an anticipation of future research needs. Literature references provide a selection of publications on research activities presented herein.