Trends in Wood Dust Inhalation Exposure in the UK, 1985-2005

Methods: Analysis of the temporal trend in exposure concentrations was performed using Linear Mixed Effect Models on the log-transformed NEDB data set and expressed as the relative annual change in concentration. Results: For the NEDB wood dust data, an annual decline of geometric mean (GM) exposure of 8.1% per year was found based on 1459 exposure measurements collected between 1985 and 2003. This trend was predominantly observed in data from inspection visits (measurements collected on a mandatory basis by a Specialist HSE Inspector) (n = 1009), while data from representative surveys (measurements collected on a voluntary basis to provide information on current practices and exposures) remained relatively stable. Ten follow-up surveys in individual workplaces in 2004-2005 resulted in 70 new measurements and for each of the companies resurveyed, the GM of the wood dust exposure decreased between sampling surveys. Conclusion: Analysis of the temporal trend in UK wood dust exposure concentrations revealed declines of 8% per annum. Interviews with key long-serving employees and management suggest that factors such as technological changes in production processes, response to new legislation, and enforcement agency inspections, together with global economic trends, could be linked to the downward trends observed.