[A 5-year before-and-after comparison of lung function in asbestos workers]

A 5-year before-and-after comparison of lung function was carried out in 119 male asbestos workers. Of them 50 were healthy workers (0), 25 were patients with suspectable asbestosis (0+), 36 with Stage I asbestosis (Ias) and 8 with Stage II asbestosis (II as). The findings measured for before and after 5 years revealed that FVC, FEV and DLco declined in the four groups over the whole period of observation. The decrease in FVC and DLco was most marked and the differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Comparison among four groups showed that all indices of lung function in Group II as reduced significantly after 5 years (P < 0.01), indicating a rapid decrease of lung function in Group II as. It is suggested that FVC and DLco are the most sensitive indices in detecting very early abnormalities of lung function in asbestos workers.