A profile of silicosis cases who died

Silicosis cases which had been notified by doctors and confirmed after investigations were followed up by the Industrial Health Division. Up to August 1981, a total of 313 persons were confirmed as having the disease. Of these, 59 had died. The majority of these 59 persons had had their silica exposure in the granite quarries. 13 had been exposed to "rubber powder" which contained a high percentage of free silica. 52 of those who died were male, and their average age at death was 60.87 years. This did not appear to be significantly shorter than their life expectancy of 65.1 years. But the average age of death for the 7 women was 58.86 years, which was much shorter than their life expectancy of 70 years. Many of the men died from causes unrelated to silicosis. But 6 of the 7 women had progressive massive fibrosis (PMF) and they apparently died of the disease or complications arising from it.