Seoul St. Mary's Hospital surveys Mongolian mine workers' health in WHO-backed project

Iron, fluorspar mines assessed under WHO partnership program

Occupational health assessments are conducted for mine workers at a Mongolian mine site. [Provided by Seoul St. Mary's Hospital]

Seoul St. Mary's Hospital is extending its expertise in pneumoconiosis prevention and treatment — built through years of caring for domestic coal miners — to mine workers in Mongolia.

The Occupational and Environmental Medicine Center at the Catholic University of Korea Seoul St. Mary's Hospital announced Friday that Professor Myung Jun-pyo of its occupational and environmental medicine department traveled to the Buuruundur region of Mongolia from Sept. 15 to 18 to assess the health conditions of mine workers and evaluate working environments at an iron mine and a fluorspar mine.

The survey was conducted as part of a WHO collaborating center program, under which the WHO designates institutions such as research institutes and universities to support the implementation of health programs. The hospital's Occupational and Environmental Medicine Center was the first private occupational health institution in South Korea to receive such a designation, and has since supported worker health promotion, prevention of occupational diseases, and capacity building among local medical professionals.

Myung visited underground mining sites alongside specialists from the Mongolian National University of Medical Sciences' Department of Respiratory Medicine and the Mongolian Society of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. The team examined dust generation patterns at each stage of the operation — drilling, crushing, loading and transport — and assessed workers' respiratory health and occupational exposure histories.

At the open-pit iron mine in particular, the team identified working conditions in which crystalline silica could be generated during drilling and crushing. Crystalline silica is classified as a Group 1 human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

Professor Myung Jun-pyo (fifth from right) of the occupational and environmental medicine department poses for a photo with representatives from the Mongolian Society of Occupational and Environmental Medicine and the Department of Respiratory Medicine at the Mongolian National University of Medical Sciences. [Provided by Seoul St. Mary's Hospital]

When inhaled, crystalline silica accumulates in the lungs over time, causing chronic inflammation and pulmonary fibrosis that can lead to silicosis, one of the most common forms of pneumoconiosis. The research team said quantitative analysis of respirable dust concentrations and crystalline silica content would be needed, with findings linked to health screening results.

At the underground fluorspar mine, the team found that dust tends to stagnate due to confined spaces and limited ventilation. At some sealed mine entrances, mine drainage and leachate were observed seeping out, pointing to a need for further review of environmental health concerns including potential heavy metal contamination of nearby streams and groundwater.

According to a study published last year based on Global Burden of Disease 2021 data, an estimated 62,866 new pneumoconiosis cases and 18,323 deaths were recorded worldwide in 2021. While age-standardized incidence and mortality rates fell by 28.5 percent and 52.8 percent, respectively, compared with 1990, the absolute numbers of patients and deaths have risen.

Pneumoconiosis remains a major occupational disease in South Korea. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency's National Health Information Portal, approximately 19,000 patients were living with the condition as of 2023. In the 2024 industrial accident statistics, pneumoconiosis deaths accounted for the largest share of deaths from occupational diseases.

Seoul St. Mary's Hospital plans to continue working with its Mongolian partner institutions on regular health assessments for mine workers, evaluations of dust and hazardous factor exposure, early detection and management of occupational respiratory diseases, and education for local medical staff.

"We plan to share the experience we have accumulated in preventing, treating and managing pneumoconiosis through the care of domestic coal miners with Mongolian specialists, and to build a health management system that enables early detection and ongoing management of occupational respiratory diseases among mine workers," Myung said.

Meanwhile, Seoul St. Mary's Hospital visited the Gyeongdong mine in Dogye-eup, Samcheok, Gangwon Province, in August to conduct on-site pneumoconiosis training for resident physicians. Nine medical staff members, including four residents, toured the coal mine, held health lectures for pneumoconiosis patients and their families, and inspected the mine tunnels firsthand.

woo@heraldcorp.com