Cross-shift airway responses and long-term decline in FEV1 in cotton textile workers.

Rationale: Acute airway response, measured as cross-shift change in FEV(1), to cotton dust may lead to subsequent chronic loss of lung function in exposed workers.

Objectives: To explore the association between the magnitude and frequency of cross-shift change and chronic loss of FEV(1).

Methods: Four hundred eight cotton workers and 417 silk workers from Shanghai textile mills were observed prospectively for 20 years, with cross-shift measurements at baseline and follow-up surveys at approximate 5-year intervals.