Practice Areas: Toxic Tort Claims

Frequently Asked Questions about Silica

These are questions often asked about silica, silica-induced disease and compensation:

What is Silica?

Silica is a mineral, a white or colorless crystal. It occurs in nature abundantly as sand, quartz, flint, agate and many other mineral rocks. Silica is used as an abrasive in sandblasting and is found in many products such as glass and concrete.

What is Silicosis?

Silicosis is scarring of the lungs caused by inhalation of silica dust that often results in chronic shortness of breath.

Are there different types of Silicosis?

Yes. A person may develop any of three types of silicosis depending on the amount of silica inhaled:

  • Chronic silicosis, which usually occurs after 10 or more years of exposure to silica at relatively low concentrations.

  • Accelerated silicosis, which results from exposure to high concentrations of silica and develops 5 to 10 years after the initial exposure.

  • Acute silicosis, which occurs where exposure concentrations are the highest and can cause symptoms to develop within a few weeks to 4 or 5 years after the initial exposure.

What are the symptoms of silicosis?

Initially, a person with silicosis may have no symptoms. As silicosis progresses, there may be difficulty in breathing and other chest symptoms such as a cough may develop. Infectious complications (e.g., tuberculosis) may also cause fever, weight loss and night sweats.

Can silicosis result in death?

Yes. Silicosis can so weaken a person's capacity to breathe that death can result from sheer respiratory failure. Silicosis decreases blood flow to the lungs and this can cause the heart disease known as cor pulmonale. Silicosis makes its victims prone to develop tuberculosis, pneumonia and other pulmonary diseases. Finally, silicosis can result in lung cancer.

Who is at risk?

Persons who work in the sandblasting, stone mason, mining, quarrying and demolition trades are often exposed to silica dust.

Although devices designed to protect those exposed to silica dusts do exist (the air-supplied hood, for example), many workers perform their work using only paper masks which provide inadequate protection -- a fact often unknown to workers.

Is there a medical test to determine if I have silica-induced disease?

The most common test used to determine if you have silicosis is a chest x-ray. The x-ray cannot detect the silica particles in your lungs, but can detect signs of lung disease caused by silica. While other things besides silica can sometimes produce similar changes in the lungs, this test is usually reliable for detecting silica-related effects, especially when combined with a history of exposure.

Can silicosis be treated?

No. There is no effective treatment or cure for silicosis. However, it is extremely important that you have frequent chest x-rays to determine at an early stage whether you have contracted lung cancer.

Can lung cancer be treated?

Yes. If an early detection is made, surgery, chemotherapy and/or radiation can sometimes cure the disease.

If I have a silica-induced disease how can I obtain compensation?

There are a number of ways to obtain compensation if you develop a silica-induced disease:

  • You can file a lawsuit against the manufacturers of the silica-containing products to which you were exposed, the manufacturers of the respiratory protective devices you used and/or the manufacturers of the sandblasting equipment that you used.

  • Workers' compensation and Social Security disability are also a source of compensation.