Silicosis employees in the processing of plans from kitchen counters of bar and shops, etc. in quartz composite resin: provisional results of the survey conducted environmental and health within the territory of USL 11 of Empoli in Tuscany among steelworkers materials in composite quartz resin and review of the literature

In the territory of USL 11 Empoli, Tuscany, 22 companies are active in working stone, eight of them also work in composite materials, synthetic resin and quartz, mainly used to produce countertops, bathrooms, counters of stores, etc.. These materials commonly contain more than 90% of quartz and are processed in the same manner with which they work natural materials. In the working cycle, it exists dry machining which give rise to high production of dust. Environmental investigations were conducted in the two companies that used mainly these materials by detecting very high values of exposure to quartz among the workers. Workers were required to be seen, running or revision of the Rx Chest according to ILO-BIT. Have been highlighted 7 cases of silicosis, one of which is severe, in a group of 29 Workers. The review of the literature shows a significant risk among those involved in the processing of these materials, with severe cases of silicosis arising in young subjects with relatively short length of service and that often leads to lung transplantation.