Ground Zero workers suffer health problems

ALMOST 70% of the people who worked at Ground Zero in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks on New York suffered lung problems during or after their work, according to a major new study out yesterday.

High rates of lung “abnormalities” persisted years later, the research based on 9,500 responders found.

Among those who had no such problems before the attacks on the World Trade Center, 61% developed lung symptoms while working on what became known as “The Pile”.

The study by Manhattan’s Mount Sinai Medical Centre was compiled from the hospital’s experience treating groups including police officers, firefighters, construction workers, transport workers and volunteers.

It focused mainly on what was soon dubbed “World Trade Center cough” — an affliction which was little understood immediately after the attacks but quickly became a concern for health experts.

A third of those tested had abnormal lung function, the research found.

Patients had abnormalities at a rate double that expected in the general population, and they continued for months and sometimes years.

Almost 70% of respondents had new or worsened lung symptoms after the attacks.

The problems tended to be worst among those who arrived first at the site.

Mount Sinai has been the focal point of New York research on September 11-related illnesses.