lung+article+-+rachel

The World Trade Center Health Registry surveyed approximately 26,000 ground zero workers to study the effects of September 11th between 2003 and 2004. The study published in early August reports that the development rate of asthma for these workers is 12 times the expected rate for adults. Why? Especially during the early weeks of recovery proper protective breathing equipment was not made readily available, causing the risk of developing asthma to rise 3% every 10 days. The study shows that those who arrived on site on 9/11 have the highest risk of development because of the thickness of the dust clouds and smoke. As recovery continued mask availability increased, though rates of occurrence increased even among those that wore masks, even the most protective masks were only effective when used properly. Though there are some factors for errors in the survey such as there is a higher chance that workers who have developed asthma participating in the survey. Yet the simple fact remains this is the largest report to date that focuses primarily on the connection between dust caused by 9/11 and respiratory complications.