The authors said the study findings were counter intuitive for another reason. The start of the Federal Black Lung Program in 1970 coincided with the adoption of modern dust control measures in mines. Because cumulative dust exposure is an important risk factor for the development of PMF, over time the number of PMF diagnoses should decline.
The authors offered several possible explanations for the increase, including the possibility that miners were exposed to higher dust concentrations than reported and that changes in mining have altered the size, shape and mineralogical composition of coal mine dust in ways that promote fibrosis.
The authors said that, if properly enforced, new Mine Safety and Health Administration coal dust regulations that went into effect in 2014 should help reduce dust exposure in U.S. coal mines.
"Coal mine operators and coal miners should continually be educated about the harmful effects of coal mine dust exposure and become active participants in the dust control programs in their mines," Dr. Almberg said. "The advent of continuous personal dust monitors may provide an opportunity for miners to participate in real-time monitoring and reduce excessive exposures proactively."
She added that increasing the participation rate of working miners in the national surveillance program is "paramount in catching the disease before it progresses to PMF."
Provided by: American Thoracic Society
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Coal miners at growing risk of developing debilitating, deadly lung fibrosis
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