AB083. Occupational dust-related diseases and policy responses: Taiwan’s recent experience
Abstract

AB083. Occupational dust-related diseases and policy responses: Taiwan’s recent experience

Yi-Ping Wei1, Lukas Jyuhn-Hsiarn Lee2, Yawen Cheng1,3

1Institute of Health Policy and Management, College of Public Health, National Taiwan University, Taipei; 2National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Health Research Institutes, Miaoli; 3Department of Public Health, College of Public Health, National Taiwan University, Taipei

Background: New manufacturing processes have contributed to new types of occupational dust-related diseases. The objective of this study was to review the case reports and epidemiological studies on dust-related diseases published, recent statistics of workers’ compensation, and policy responses undertaken by the occupational health authorities.

Methods: We conducted a narrative literature review of peer-reviewed medical case reports and epidemiological studies published in Chinese and English between 2014 and 2024. We also examined recent occupational compensation statistics and performed an archival analysis using press releases, official guidelines, reports, and educational materials issued by the Ministry of Labor of Taiwan.

Results: Over the past 10 years, researchers in Taiwan published 24 medical case reports on pneumoconiosis, documenting a total of 29 cases, with recent cases predominantly linked to the artificial stone industry. During the same period, 12 epidemiological studies were published, primarily with national health insurance records, labor insurance data, and hospital medical records, to identify geographic patterns, high-risk industries, and temporal trends. The number of occupational lung disease cases and compensation claims fluctuated but showed a downward trend in recent years, showing differences between epidemiological data. In recent years, the occupational health authorities have issued administrative orders and guidelines regarding dust hazards, mostly in the form of financial subsidies and guidance, to encourage businesses to invest in dust control and personal protective equipment.

Conclusions: The occupational health community and labor authorities are concerned about dust exposures and their occupational health impacts. However, policy measures are not mandatory, and whether they can effectively prevent dust-related diseases remains to be further explored.

Keywords: Dust diseases; pneumoconiosis; case reports; epidemiology; policy

Footnote

Conflicts of Interest: The authors received funding from the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC; Project No. NSTC 113-2410-H-002-079-MY2) in Taiwan. The authors have no other conflicts of interest to declare.

Open Access Statement: This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0), which permits the noncommercial replication and distribution of the article with the strict proviso that no changes or edits are made and the original work is properly cited (including links to both the formal publication through the relevant DOI and the license). See: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.

doi: 10.21037/jphe-26-ab083
Cite this abstract as: Wei YP, Lee LJH, Cheng Y. AB083. Occupational dust-related diseases and policy responses: Taiwan’s recent experience. J Public Health Emerg 2026;10:AB083.

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