[Silicosis and industrial bronchitis by exposure to silica powders and cement].

OBJECTIVE to identify the association between the exposure of workers to inorganic dust in a quarry and a cement factory and pulmonary diseases. METHODS a transverse study on data from 32 quarry workers (QWs) and 57 cement production line workers (CFWs) to inorganic-dust exposure was performed. Pulmonary function tests and chest X ray were done in both groups. RESULTS there were differences between QWs and the CFWs; QWs were younger, shorter and thinner. The number of sick individuals might be considered significantly different, showing a smaller proportion on the cement production line. The quarry workers have been on the company for a shorter period of time and, in the end, they present more serious pulmonary problems with an average of 3 years working. CONCLUSIONS the amount of free-silica that is managed on the quarry affects the workers in some way, even when literature states that the evolution of industrial bronchitis and silicosis have a period development of approximately 10 years.