We aimed at investigating mortality among beryllium-exposed workers, according to solubility of beryllium and beryllium compounds. We conducted an historical cohort study of 16,115 workers employed during 1925-2008 in 15 facilities, including eight entailing exposure to insoluble beryllium and seven entailing exposure to soluble/mixed beryllium compounds, who were followed up for mortality unti...

OBJECTIVES To describe relative hazards in sectors of the beryllium industry, risk factors of beryllium disease and sensitisation related to work process were sought in a beryllium manufacturing plant producing pure metal, oxide, alloys, and ceramics. METHODS All 646 active employees were interviewed; beryllium sensitisation was ascertained with the beryllium lymphocyte proliferation blood te...

Despite its high toxicity, beryllium is widely used because of its unique properties. Beryllium is toxic both as a carcinogen and as the agent that initiates chronic beryllium disease (CBD). CBD, a granulomatous lung disease, is a cellmediated immune response to inhaled beryllium in 6–20% of exposed individuals. Considerable invesitagations into the nature and effects of CBD have been conducted...

The increasing use of beryllium in a variety of industries continues to be a hazard. New cases are still being reported to the UK Beryllium Case Registry, now numbering 60 in the period 1945-1988. The majority of cases follow inhalation which results in acute beryllium disease (chemical pneumonitis) or more commonly chronic beryllium disease--a granulomatous pneumonitis. Granulomatous skin nodu...

Beryllium (atomic number, 4; relative atomic mass, 9.01) is a metal, which belongs to Group IIA of the Periodic Table. The oxidation state of beryllium compounds is +2. Selected chemical and physical properties of beryllium, beryllium– aluminium and beryllium–copper alloys, and various beryllium compounds can be found in the previous IARC Monograph (IARC, 1993). Beryllium is the lightest of all...

Beryllium (atomic number, 4; relative atomic mass, 9.01) is a metal, which belongs to Group IIA of the Periodic Table. The oxidation state of beryllium compounds is +2. Selected chemical and physical properties of beryllium, beryllium– aluminium and beryllium–copper alloys, and various beryllium compounds can be found in the previous IARC Monograph (IARC, 1993). Beryllium is the lightest of all...

BACKGROUND Beryllium exposure occurs in aluminium smelters from natural contamination of bauxite, the principal source of aluminium. AIMS To characterize beryllium exposure in aluminium smelters and determine the prevalence rate of beryllium sensitization (BeS) among aluminium smelter workers. METHODS A population of 3185 workers from nine aluminium smelters owned by four different aluminiu...

Chronic beryllium disease is an occupational lung disease that begins as a cell-mediated immune response to beryllium. Although respiratory and engineering controls have significantly decreased occupational beryllium exposures over the last decade, the rate of beryllium sensitization has not declined. We hypothesized that skin exposure to beryllium particles would provide an alternative route f...