Mortality among welders, including a group exposed to nickel oxides

Mortality and causes of death were examined among 1,059 white male welders employed between 1943 and 1973 at three plants in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Based on deaths reported as of 1974, the standardized mortality ratio (SMR) for all causes was 87 (173 deaths observed vs. 199.0 expected on the basis of death rates for US white males). There were no deaths resulting from sinonasal cancer, and the SMR for lung cancer was 150 (95% confidence limits = 87 and 240). A subgroup of these welders (N = 536) was exposed to nickel oxides at the Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion (K-25) Plant; recent air concentrations of nickel (from personal air samplers) were greater than proposed standards. Standardized mortality ratios for lung cancer and diseases of the respiratory system were not higher among K-25 Plant welders than among other welders (N = 523). Welders employed for greater than or equal to 50 wk at the K-25 Plant had an SMR for lung cancer of 188 (95% confidence limits = 61 and 438) based on small numbers of deaths (5 observed vs. 2.66 expected). Further follow-up of these groups is needed.