Silicosis deaths among young adults--United States, 1968-1994.

Silicosis is a potentially fatal and typically chronic fibrotic lung disease caused by occupational exposure to respirable crystalline silica dust. In the United States, most silicosis-associated deaths occur among persons aged > or = 65 years, often following many years of silica dust exposure. However, the continuing occurrence of silicosis deaths in young adults reflects relatively recent overexposures, some of sufficient magnitude to cause severe disease and death after relatively short periods of exposure. This report describes deaths among two young adults with silicosis and underscores the risk for deaths from silicosis at relatively young ages.