October 20, 2003—The UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has published updated statistics on work-related mesothelioma deaths by geographical area within Great Britain. The statistics are based on previously published death information covering the twenty-year period, 1981-2000.
HSE statistician, Damien McElvenny, explained, “The statistics relate to the period 1981-2000 and generally reflect asbestos exposure in the 1970s and earlier decades. Due to death certificates reporting the usual place of residence at the time of death, the extent that people who worked with asbestos have moved away from the areas in which they were exposed will naturally have some effect on the geographical distribution of mesothelioma deaths.
“These results may also reflect a weakening of the effect of specific high-risk activities of the past, such as shipbuilding, railway engineering, and asbestos product manufacturing, as other sources of exposure have developed more recently across a wider range of areas as a result of building maintenance and asbestos removal work.”
The statistics are given in a factsheet (.pdf file) available on the HSE Web site or as a hard copy on request from Epidemiology and Medical Statistics Unit, HSE, Room 244, Magdalen House, Stanley Precinct, Bootle, Merseyside L20 3QZ. Tel: 0151 951 3051/3479.
