Table 2 Exposure to asbestos and MMVF among cases and controls in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and the UK respectively.
| Exposure status | Asbestos (all types) | Asbestos (chrysotile only) | Man‐made vitreous fibres (glass and mineral wool) | Ceramic fibres only* | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cases (%) | Controls (%) | Cases (%) | Controls (%) | Cases (%) | Controls (%) | Cases (%) | Controls (%) | |
| Never exposed CEE† | 1824 (88.7) | 1908 (88.6) | 1824 (94.9) | 1908 (94.1) | 1954 (95.6) | 2070 (96.6) | 1954 (99.6) | 2070 (99.8) |
| Ever exposed CEE | 233 (11.3) | 246 (11.4) | 99 (5.1) | 120 (5.9) | 91 (4.4) | 73 (3.4) | 7 (0.4) | 5 (0.2) |
| Never exposed UK† | 64 (43.2) | 95 (62.9) | 64 (78.0) | 95 (88.8) | 124 (83.8) | 134 (89.3) | 124 (100) | 134 (100) |
| Ever exposed UK | 84 (56.8) | 56 (37.1) | 18 (22.0) | 12 (11.2) | 24 (16.2) | 16 (10.7) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) |
| Intensity of exposure CEE | ||||||||
| Low | 171 (73.4) | 194 (78.9) | 76 (76.8) | 98 (81.7) | 60 (65.9) | 54 (74.0) | 5 (71.4) | 3 (60.0) |
| Medium | 50 (21.5) | 42 (17.1) | 18 (18.2) | 15 (12.5) | 26 (28.6) | 15 (20.5) | 2 (28.6) | 2 (40.0) |
| High | 12 (5.2) | 10 (4.1) | 5 (5.1) | 7 (5.8) | 5 (5.5) | 4 (5.5) | ||
| Intensity of exposure UK | ||||||||
| Low | 49 (58.3) | 33 (58.9) | 12 (66.7) | 10 (83.3) | 13 (54.2) | 7 (43.8) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) |
| Medium | 22 (26.2) | 15 (26.8) | 4 (22.2) | 1 (8.3) | 8 (33.3) | 7 (43.8) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) |
| High | 13 (15.5) | 8 (14.3) | 2 (11.1) | 1 (8.3) | 3 (12.5) | 2 (12.5) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) |
| Frequency of exposure CEE | ||||||||
| 1–5% | 112 (48.1) | 124 (50.4) | 58 (58.6) | 64 (53.3) | 51 (56.0) | 42 (57.5) | 1 (14.3) | 1 (20.0) |
| 5–30% | 73 (31.3) | 74 (30.1) | 26 (26.3) | 31 (25.8) | 26 (28.6) | 20 (27.4) | 3 (42.9) | 3 (60.0) |
| >30% | 48 (20.6) | 48 (19.5) | 15 (15.2) | 25 (20.8) | 14 (15.4) | 11 (15.1) | 3 (42.9) | 1 (20.0) |
| Frequency of exposure UK | ||||||||
| 1–5% | 45 (53.6) | 41 (73.2) | 9 (50.0) | 10 (83.3) | 12 (50.0) | 8 (50.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) |
| 5–30% | 33 (39.3) | 12 (21.4) | 7 (38.9) | 2 (16.7) | 10 (41.7) | 7 (43.8) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) |
| >30% | 6 (7.1) | 3 (5.4) | 2 (11.1) | 0 (0.0) | 2 (8.3) | 1 (6.3) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) |
| Confidence in assessment CEE | ||||||||
| Possible | 30 (12.9) | 22 (8.9) | 11 (11.1) | 15 (12.5) | 8 (8.8) | 10 (13.7) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) |
| Probable | 80 (34.3) | 98 (39.8) | 37 (37.4) | 49 (40.8) | 29 (31.9) | 23 (31.5) | 1 (14.3) | 0 (0.0) |
| Certain | 123 (52.8) | 125 (50.8) | 50 (50.5) | 56 (46.7) | 54 (59.3) | 40 (54.8) | 6 (85.7) | 5 (100) |
| Confidence in assessment UK | ||||||||
| Possible | 0 (0.0) | 2 (3.6) | 0 (0.0) | 1 (8.3) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) |
| Probable | 24 (28.6) | 19 (33.9) | 5 (27.8) | 4 (33.3) | 5 (20.8) | 3 (18.8) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) |
| Certain | 60 (71.4) | 35 (62.5) | 13 (72.2) | 7 (58.3) | 19 (79.2) | 13 (81.3) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) |
*Excludes subjects exposed to mixed synthetic fibres.
†Never exposed to any type of asbestos or synthetic fibres, respectively.