Reducing Silica Exposure Among Brick Kiln Workers in Nepal

Completed · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Silicosis

In brief

Inhaling respirable silica increases the risk for silicosis, an incurable and debilitating lung disease. In South Asia, one high-risk industry is brick manufacturing, where more than 4 million manual laborers mold bricks by hand. In Nepal, brick manufacturing employs over 200,000 workers across 1,200 registered brick kilns. These workers are exposed to respirable silica concentrations 1.4 to 6.6 times higher than the limits set by the U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Preventing silicosis is paramount, as the average brick kiln worker cannot afford medical care and only 6.8% receive regular health checks. Few studies have evaluated interventions in brick kiln workers to reduce silica exposure and prevent silicosis. One promising intervention involves providing workers who are exposed to silica above the permissible exposure limit with personal protective equipment (PPE), specifically respirators. When properly used, respirators decrease silica inhalation and the risk of silicosis. Brick kiln workers in Nepal do not use any PPE. Several studies have explored PPE barriers and have evaluated the feasibility of implementing PPE but to date none have been conducted in Nepali brick kiln workers. To close this gap, the goal of this research is a human-centered design approach to develop and pilot a PPE training program in one brick kiln in Nepal guided by the Discover, Design, Build, and Test (DDBT) framework. This research is necessary to understand the Nepali context and to efficiently develop appropriate and feasible PPE intervention components that will be trialed in future research.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT06090370

Run by

Johns Hopkins University

People needed

98

Starts

2024-01-24

Expected to finish

2024-06-20

Last updated by the study team

2024-06-24

Who can join

Age: 18 and older. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Age 18 years or older
• Active Brick Kiln Workers in Bhaktapur, Nepal
• Cognitively capable to provide informed consent

You may not qualify if…

• Less than 18 years old
• Non Brick Kiln Workers
• Not cognitively capable to provide informed consent

Where it is running

• Johns Hopkins University — Baltimore, Maryland, United States
• Duke University — Durham, North Carolina, United States
• Tribhuvan University — Maharajgunj, Kathmandu, Nepal

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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