RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Relationship between silicosis and rheumatoid arthritis.
JF Thorax
JO Thorax
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and British Thoracic Society
SP 596
OP 601
DO 10.1136/thx.41.8.596
VO 41
IS 8
A1 G K Sluis-Cremer
A1 P A Hessel
A1 E Hnizdo
A1 A R Churchill
YR 1986
UL http://thorax.bmj.com/content/41/8/596.abstract
AB The relationship between rheumatoid arthritis and silicosis was studied by means of a case-control study in South African gold miners. One hundred and fifty seven miners with rheumatoid arthritis classified as "definite" (91) or "probable" (66) were individually matched by year of birth with miners who had no evidence of rheumatoid arthritis. Unmatched analysis of the case-control status for "probable" and "definite" cases yielded an odds ratio of 2.84 (p = 0.0001). Separate analyses yielded an odds ratio of 3.79 (p = 0.0006) for "definite" cases, a non-significant odds ratio for "probable" cases, and an odds ratio of 5.00 (p = 0.0003) for the presence of rheumatoid factor. These results could not be explained on the basis of cumulative dust exposure or intensity of exposure. The rate of progression of silicosis in both the "definite" and the "probable" groups was greater than for the control patients with silicosis, as was the probability of silicosis presenting at the start with larger nodules (type r).