Inhalational diesel exhaust exposure in submariners: observational study

An observational study was performed with a convenience sample of 38 submariners exposed to diesel exhaust for 9 hours, to assess the development of reactive airways dysfunction syndrome (RADS) after prophylactic corticosteroid treatment.

Twenty-four subjects were available for baseline physical examinations, pulmonary function tests, and chest radiographs, and 16 more subjects were available for interviews; 30 subjects were available for 6-month follow-up surveys. Subjects were treated on the basis of presenting symptoms; 19 subjects were treated with a 10-day course of orally administered prednisone, accompanied by 30 days of inhaled fluticasone/salmeterol therapy.

There were no cases of RADS diagnosed at 6-month follow-up evaluations.

There were no cases of RADS diagnosed at 6-month follow-up evaluations in submariners with uncontrolled, isolated, heavy diesel exhaust exposure, despite many initial symptoms that portended the diagnosis. To our knowledge, this is the largest reported case study of corticosteroid treatment initiated with an expressed intention to prevent the development of RADS after an isolated diesel exhaust exposure. Although we cannot prove that early intervention with corticosteroids prevented RADS, we think that the implementation of prompt prophylactic treatment expedited symptom resolution and might have prevented RADS development, on the basis of previous historical control data. RADS resulting from diesel exhaust may be an important public health issue, and our hope is to promote increased recognition of the diagnosis, which often is not suspected upon initial presentation but is delayed by up to several years. Increasing awareness may prompt pursuit of more-aggressive interventions with acute and protracted corticosteroid treatment and execution of the necessary controlled trials to establish treatment efficacy in mitigating the severity and/or circumventing the development of RADS.