(April 7, 2010 - Insidermedicine)

Many of the rescuers who worked at the site of the World Trade Center following the 9/11 terrorist attacks are left with persistent lung damage, according to research published in the April 8 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Symptoms of impaired lung functioning include:

•    Shortness of breath

•    Persistent cough

•    Wheezing

Researchers from the Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York tested the lung functioning of over 12,000 Fire Department of New York City workers who were present at the World Trade Center between September 11, 2001, and September 24, 2001. These tests were conducted every 12 to 18 months from March 12, 2000, to September 11, 2008.

During the first year following the 9/11 attacks, average lung functioning decreased significantly for all workers but was especially marked among firefighters who had never smoked. During the following six years, little or no recovery in lung function was detected. On the contrary, on average, lung function diminished slightly every year. By the end of the study about 13% of firefighters who had never smoked and 22% of emergency medical services personnel who had never smoked had an abnormally low level of lung functioning.

Today’s research demonstrates how inhaling the dust surrounding the World Trade Center after the 9/11 attacks has frequently resulted in persistent lung damage.