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Singh A, Bartington SE, Abreu P, Anderson R, Cowell N, Leach FC. Impacts of daily household activities on indoor particulate and NO 2 concentrations; a case study from oxford UK. Heliyon 2024; 10:e34210. [PMID: 39165984 PMCID: PMC11333897 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e34210] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2024] [Revised: 07/02/2024] [Accepted: 07/04/2024] [Indexed: 08/22/2024] Open
Abstract
This study explores indoor air pollutant (PM1, PM2.5 and NO2) concentrations over a 15-week period during the COVID-19 pandemic in a typical suburban household in Oxford, UK. A multi-room intensive monitoring study was conducted in a single dwelling using 10 air quality sensors measuring real-time pollutant concentrations at 10 second intervals to assess temporal and spatial variability in PM1, PM2.5 and NO2 concentrations, identify pollution-prone areas, and investigate the impact of residents' activities on indoor air quality. Significant spatial variations in PM concentrations were observed within the study dwelling, with highest hourly concentrations (769.0 & 300.9 μg m-3 for PM2.5, and PM1, respectively) observed in the upstairs study room, which had poor ventilation. Cooking activities were identified as a major contributor to indoor particulate pollution, with peak concentrations aligning with cooking events. Indoor NO2 levels were typically higher than outdoor levels, particularly in the kitchen where a gas-cooking appliance was used. There was no significant association observed between outdoor and indoor PM concentrations; however, a clear correlation was evident between kitchen PM emissions and indoor levels. Similarly, outdoor NO2 had a limited influence on indoor air quality compared to kitchen activities. Indoor sources were found to dominate for both PM and NO2, with higher Indoor/Outdoor (I/O) ratios observed in the upstairs bedroom and the kitchen. Overall, our findings highlight the contribution of indoor air pollutant sources and domestic activities to indoor air pollution exposure, notably during the COVID-19 pandemic when people were typically spending more time in domestic settings. Our novel findings, which suggest high levels of pollutant concentrations in upstairs (first floor) rooms, underscore the necessity for targeted interventions. These interventions include the implementation of source control measures, effective ventilation strategies and occupant education for behaviour change, all aimed at improving indoor air quality and promoting healthier living environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ajit Singh
- Institute of Applied Health Research, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston Park Road, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
- School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston Park Road, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
| | - Suzanne E. Bartington
- Institute of Applied Health Research, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston Park Road, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
| | - Pedro Abreu
- Oxford City Council, St Aldates Chambers, 109 St Aldates, Oxford, OX1 1DS, UK
| | - Ruth Anderson
- Oxfordshire County Council, County Hall, New Road, Oxford, OX1 1ND, UK
| | - Nicole Cowell
- School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston Park Road, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
- Centre for Environmental Policy, Imperial College London, Weeks Building, 16-18 Prince's Garden, London SW7 1NE, UK
| | - Felix C.P. Leach
- Department for Engineering Science, University of Oxford, Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PJ, UK
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Moore CM, Thornburg J, Secor EA, Hamlington KL, Schiltz AM, Freeman KL, Everman JL, Fingerlin TE, Liu AH, Seibold MA. Breathing zone pollutant levels are associated with asthma exacerbations in high-risk children. MEDRXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR HEALTH SCIENCES 2023:2023.09.22.23295971. [PMID: 37790375 PMCID: PMC10543064 DOI: 10.1101/2023.09.22.23295971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/05/2023]
Abstract
Background Indoor and outdoor air pollution levels are associated with poor asthma outcomes in children. However, few studies have evaluated whether breathing zone pollutant levels associate with asthma outcomes. Objective Determine breathing zone exposure levels of NO 2 , O 3 , total PM 10 and PM 10 constituents among children with exacerbation-prone asthma, and examine correspondence with in-home and community measurements and associations with outcomes. Methods We assessed children's personal breathing zone exposures using wearable monitors. Personal exposures were compared to in-home and community measurements and tested for association with lung function, asthma control, and asthma exacerbations. Results 81 children completed 219 monitoring sessions. Correlations between personal and community levels of PM 10 , NO 2 , and O 3 were poor, whereas personal PM 10 and NO 2 levels correlated with in-home measurements. However, in-home monitoring underdetected brown carbon (Personal:79%, Home:36.8%) and ETS (Personal:83.7%, Home:4.1%) personal exposures, and detected black carbon in participants without these personal exposures (Personal: 26.5%, Home: 96%). Personal exposures were not associated with lung function or asthma control. Children experiencing an asthma exacerbation within 60 days of personal exposure monitoring had 1.98, 2.21 and 2.04 times higher brown carbon (p<0.001), ETS (p=0.007), and endotoxin (p=0.012), respectively. These outcomes were not associated with community or in-home exposure levels. Conclusions Monitoring pollutant levels in the breathing zone is essential to understand how exposures influence asthma outcomes, as agreement between personal and in-home monitors is limited. Inhaled exposure to PM 10 constituents modifies asthma exacerbation risk, suggesting efforts to limit these exposures among high-risk children may decrease their asthma burden. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS In-home and community monitoring of environmental pollutants may underestimate personal exposures. Levels of inhaled exposure to PM 10 constituents appear to strongly influence asthma exacerbation risk. Therefore, efforts should be made to mitigate these exposures. CAPSULE SUMMARY Leveraging wearable, breathing-zone monitors, we show exposures to inhaled pollutants are poorly proxied by in-home and community monitors, among children with exacerbation-prone asthma. Inhaled exposure to multiple PM 10 constituents is associated with asthma exacerbation risk.
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Paoli L, Bandoni E, Sanità di Toppi L. Lichens and Mosses as Biomonitors of Indoor Pollution. BIOLOGY 2023; 12:1248. [PMID: 37759647 PMCID: PMC10525784 DOI: 10.3390/biology12091248] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2023] [Revised: 08/30/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023]
Abstract
Biomonitoring in indoor environments is a recent application, and so far, indoor air quality (IAQ) has been investigated only in a few cases using photosynthesising biomonitors. On the whole, 22 studies have been selected and reviewed, being specifically focused on the assessment of IAQ using biomonitors, such as lichens (9 papers), mosses (10), or their combination (3). In general, indoor samples face an altered light regime, ventilation, and a reduced hydration, which should be taken into consideration during the design and implementation of indoor monitoring. This review highlights critical issues (and some solutions) related to sample devitalisation (moss), hydration during exposure, preparation of the exposure device (mostly lichen and moss bags), duration of the exposure, post-exposure treatments, assessment of the vitality of the samples, as well as data elaboration and interpretation. This review evidences the feasibility and usefulness of lichen/moss monitoring in indoor environments and the need to develop standardised protocols.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luca Paoli
- Department of Biology, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy; (E.B.); (L.S.d.T.)
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Dang M, Li M, Li J, Liu R, Guo Y, Hou K. Emissions of Formamide and Ammonia from Foam Mats: Online Measurement Based on Dopant-Assisted Photoionization TOFMS and Assessment of Their Exposure for Children. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2023; 57:5646-5654. [PMID: 36988557 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c08857] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
Formamide has been classified as a Class 1B reproductive toxicant to children by the European Union (EU) Chemicals Agency. Foam mats are a potential source of formamide and ammonia. Online dopant-assisted atmospheric pressure photoionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (DA-APPI-TOFMS) coupled with a Teflon environmental chamber was developed to assess the exposure risk of formamide and ammonia from foam mats to children. High levels of formamide (average 3363.72 mg/m3) and ammonia (average 1586.78 mg/m3) emissions were measured from 21 foam mats with three different raw material types: ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA: n = 7), polyethylene (PE: n = 7), and cross-linked polyethylene (XPE: n = 7). The 28 day emission testing for the selected PE mat showed that the emissions of formamide were 2 orders of magnitude higher than the EU emission limit of 20 μg/m3, and formamide may be a permanent indoor contaminant for foam mat products during their life cycle. The exposure assessment of children aged 0.5-6 years showed that the exposure dose was approximately hundreds of mg/kg-day, and the age group of 0.5-2 years was subject to much higher dermal exposures than others. Thus, this study provided key relevant information for further studies on assessing children's exposure to indoor air pollution from foam mats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min Dang
- Environment Research Institute, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Road, Qingdao 266237, China
| | - Mei Li
- Environment Research Institute, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Road, Qingdao 266237, China
| | - Jing Li
- Environment Research Institute, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Road, Qingdao 266237, China
| | - Ruidong Liu
- Environment Research Institute, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Road, Qingdao 266237, China
| | - Yingzhe Guo
- Environment Research Institute, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Road, Qingdao 266237, China
| | - Keyong Hou
- Environment Research Institute, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Road, Qingdao 266237, China
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Zou ML, Huang HC, Chen YH, Jiang CB, Wu CD, Lung SCC, Chien LC, Lo YC, Chao HJ. Sex-differences in the effects of indoor air pollutants and household environment on preschool child cognitive development. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 860:160365. [PMID: 36427743 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2022] [Revised: 11/04/2022] [Accepted: 11/17/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Air pollution, outdoor residential environment, indoor household characteristics, and parental mental health are potential factors associated with child development. However, few studies have simultaneously analyzed the association between the aforementioned factors and preschool child (aged 2-5 years) development. This study investigated the effects of those factors on child development and their potential modifying effects. A total of 142 participants were recruited from a birth cohort study in the Greater Taipei Area, and the evaluation was conducted at each participant's home from 2017 to 2020. Child cognitive development was assessed by psychologists using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development and the Wechsler Preschool & Primary Scale of Intelligence. Household air pollutants, outdoor residential environment, indoor household characteristics, parental mental health, and other covariates were evaluated. Multiple regressions were used to examine the relationships between child development and covariates. Stratified analysis by child sex and parental mental health was conducted. Average indoor air pollutant levels were below Taiwan's Indoor Air Quality Standards. After adjustment for covariates, the indoor total volatile organic compounds (TVOCs) level was significantly associated with poor child development (per interquartile range increase in the TVOC level was associated with a 5.1 percentile decrease in child cognitive development). Sex difference was observed for the association between TVOC exposure and child development. Living near schools, burning incense at home, purchasing new furniture, and parental anxiety were related to child development. Indoor TVOC level was associated with poor child cognitive development, specifically with the girls. Indoor and outdoor residential environment and parental anxiety interfered with child development. TVOCs should be used cautiously at home to minimize child exposure. A low-pollution living environment should be provided to ensure children's healthy development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ming-Lun Zou
- School of Public Health, College of Public Health, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Hsiao-Chun Huang
- School of Public Health, College of Public Health, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Yi-Hua Chen
- School of Public Health, College of Public Health, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan; Neuroscience Research Center, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Chuen-Bin Jiang
- Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, MacKay Children's Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Medicine, MacKay Medical College, New Taipei City, Taiwan
| | - Chih-Da Wu
- Department of Geomatics, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan; National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Health Research Institutes, Miaoli, Taiwan
| | | | - Ling-Chu Chien
- School of Public Health, College of Public Health, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan; Neuroscience Research Center, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Yu-Chun Lo
- Neuroscience Research Center, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan; Ph.D. Program in Medical Neuroscience, College of Medical Science and Technology, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Hsing Jasmine Chao
- School of Public Health, College of Public Health, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan; Neuroscience Research Center, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
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Hattori S, Iwamatsu T, Miura T, Tsutsumi F, Tanaka N. Investigation of Indoor Air Quality in Residential Buildings by Measuring CO 2 Concentration and a Questionnaire Survey. SENSORS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 22:7331. [PMID: 36236425 PMCID: PMC9570953 DOI: 10.3390/s22197331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2022] [Revised: 09/15/2022] [Accepted: 09/19/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Indoor air quality (IAQ) in houses is often deteriorated by chemical substances emitted from heating, building materials, or other household goods. Since it is difficult for occupants to recognize air pollution, they rarely understand the actual conditions of the IAQ. An investigation into the actual condition of IAQ in houses was therefore conducted in this study. Carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations in 24 occupied houses was measured, and the results from our analysis showed that the use of combustion heaters increased the concentration of CO2 and led to indoor air pollution. Results indicate that as outdoor temperature decreased, the frequency of ventilation decreased simultaneously, and CO2 concentration increased. Results of the questionnaire survey revealed that the actual IAQ in each house did not match the level of awareness its occupants had regarding ventilation. Along with this difficulty in perceiving air pollution, the lack of knowledge about ventilation systems and the effects of combustion heating may be additional barriers to IAQ awareness.
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Streuber D, Park YM, Sousan S. Laboratory and Field Evaluations of the GeoAir2 Air Quality Monitor for Use in Indoor Environments. AEROSOL AND AIR QUALITY RESEARCH 2022; 22:220119. [PMID: 36876290 PMCID: PMC9979595 DOI: 10.4209/aaqr.220119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
Low-cost aerosol sensors open routes to exposure assessment and air monitoring in various indoor and outdoor environments. This study evaluated the accuracy of GeoAir2--a recently developed low-cost particulate matter (PM) monitor--using two types of aerosols (salt and dust), and the effect of changes in relative humidity on its measurements in laboratory settings. For the accuracy experiments, 32 units of GeoAir2 were used, and for the humidity experiments, 3 units of GeoAir2 were used, alongside the OPC-N3 low-cost sensor and MiniWRAS reference instrument. The normal distribution of slopes between the salt and dust aerosols was compared for the accuracy experiments. In addition, the performance of GeoAir2 in indoor environments was evaluated compared to the pDR-1500 reference instrument by collocating GeoAir2 and pDR-1500 at three different homes for five days. For salt and dust aerosols smaller than 2.5 μm (PM2.5), both GeoAir2 (r = 0.96-0.99) and OPC-N3 (r = 0.98-0.99) were highly correlated with the MiniWRAS reference instrument. However, GeoAir2 was less influenced by changes in humidity than OPC-N3. While GeoAir2 reported an increase in mass concentrations ranging from 100% to 137% for low and high concentrations, an increase between 181% and 425% was observed for OPC-N3. The normal distribution of the slopes for the salt aerosols was narrower than dust aerosol, which shows closer slope similarities for salt aerosols. This study also found that GeoAir2 was highly correlated with the pDR-1500 reference instrument in indoor environments (r = 0.80-0.99). These results demonstrate potential for GeoAir2 for indoor air monitoring and exposure assessments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dillon Streuber
- Environmental Health Sciences Program, Department of Health Education and Promotion, College of Health and Human Performance, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27858, USA
| | - Yoo Min Park
- Department of Geography, Planning, and Environment, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27858, USA
| | - Sinan Sousan
- Department of Public Health, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27834, USA
- North Carolina Agromedicine Institute, Greenville, NC 27834, USA
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Fu X, Lu C, Zhang Y, Li B, Zhao Z, Huang C, Zhang X, Qian H, Wang J, Liu W, Sun Y, Norbäck D. Effect of prenatal and postnatal exposure to home renovation on the risk of common cold in preschool children. INDOOR AIR 2022; 32:e13063. [PMID: 35762240 DOI: 10.1111/ina.13063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2021] [Revised: 05/19/2022] [Accepted: 05/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Common cold is usually considered to be associated with outdoor climate, but the evidence linking with indoor environmental factors is lacking. The role of indoor renovations during which critical timing window on childhood common cold remains unclear. Therefore, we investigated the effect of exposure to new furniture and/or redecoration during prenatal and postnatal periods on the occurrence and duration of common cold in preschool children. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 39 782 children aged 3-6 years in seven cities of China. The occurrence and duration of common cold in children, and their lifetime exposures to indoor new furniture and redecoration (including pregnancy, the first year of life, and after one year old) were assessed using a questionnaire administered by the parents. Associations between high frequency (>5 colds) and long duration (≥2 weeks per cold) of common cold during past 12 months and exposure to indoor new furniture/redecoration were examined by logistic regression models in terms of odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). We found that the prevalence of high frequency and long duration of common cold in preschool children in China were, respectively, 9.2% and 11.9%. Frequent common cold was significantly associated with exposure to indoor new furniture/redecoration during pregnancy, first year, and after 1 year old, respectively, with the ORs (95% CI) = 1.25 (1.12-1.39), 1.11 (1.00-1.25), and 1.09 (1.01-1.18). Furthermore, childhood long duration per cold was associated with exposure to indoor new furniture/redecoration during pregnancy with OR (95% CI) of 1.14 (1.03-1.25) but not with postnatal exposure. We identified that prenatal exposure to home renovation was more critical than postnatal exposure for an increased risk of high frequency and long duration of common cold. Sensitivity analysis showed that the association between prenatal exposure to indoor renovations and the risk of childhood common cold was consistent and robust, and the associations were modified by some personal and indoor environmental factors. Our findings indicated that prenatal and postnatal exposure to home renovation played an important role in the risk of childhood common cold, supporting the hypothesis of "fetal origin of childhood infection."
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoli Fu
- School of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Chan Lu
- XiangYa School of Public Health, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Yinping Zhang
- School of Architecture, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Baizhan Li
- Key Laboratory of Three Gorges Reservoir Region's Eco-Environment, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China
| | - Zhuohui Zhao
- Department of Environmental Health, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Chen Huang
- Department of Building Environment and Energy Engineering, School of Environment and Architecture, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai, China
| | - Xin Zhang
- Institute of Environmental Science, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, China
| | - Hua Qian
- School of Energy & Environment, Southeast University, Nanjing, China
| | - Juan Wang
- Department of Medical Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Wei Liu
- School of Architecture, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
- Institute for Health and Environment, Chongqing University of Science and Technology, Chongqing, China
| | - Yuexia Sun
- School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Dan Norbäck
- Department of Medical Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
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Kaur R, Boobna T, Kallingal P. Effect of Covid-19 lockdown on indian children with autism. RESEARCH IN DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES 2022; 125:104230. [PMID: 35367807 PMCID: PMC8964314 DOI: 10.1016/j.ridd.2022.104230] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2021] [Revised: 03/01/2022] [Accepted: 03/25/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND To prevent the spread of Coronavirus-19 a complete lockdown was enforced in India by March, 2020. The lockdown led to drastic negative effects on the social and communicative life of people. Among these, children and adolescents have been majorly affected. The study aims to investigate the effect of lockdown on Indian children with Autism. METHODS AND PROCEDURES Thirty parents of children with Autism were given questionnaires to rate the performance of their children, pre- and post-lockdown. The questionnaires were analysed for development across activities of daily living (ADL), language and behavioral characteristics along with school and therapy performance. OUTCOME AND RESULTS The results revealed a significant regression in performance of children post-lockdown which was evident across all the domains assessed. Various additional issues like changes in sleep patterns, inadequate sitting behavior, attention span, concentration, limited eye contact, mood swings, laziness, clumsiness, hyperactivity and impulsivity were also noted post-lockdown, which were not very prominent before lockdown. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS The study anticipates to help be better prepared for such situations in future. This includes involvement of better intervention which includes home-based training strategies for these children. Moreover, the study highlights impact of online therapy and schooling for children with Autism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ramandeep Kaur
- Father Muller College of Speech and Hearing, Mangalore, Karnataka 575002, India.
| | - Tamanna Boobna
- Father Muller College of Speech and Hearing, Mangalore, Karnataka 575002, India
| | - Praseena Kallingal
- Father Muller College of Speech and Hearing, Mangalore, Karnataka 575002, India
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Kim S, Stanton K, Park Y, Thomas S. A Mobile App for Children With Asthma to Monitor Indoor Air Quality (AirBuddy): Development and Usability Study. JMIR Form Res 2022; 6:e37118. [PMID: 35604753 PMCID: PMC9171598 DOI: 10.2196/37118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2022] [Revised: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 03/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Indoor air quality is an important environmental factor that triggers and exacerbates asthma, the most common chronic disease in children. A mobile app to monitor indoor air quality could help occupants keep their indoor air quality clean. However, no app is available that allows children to monitor and improve their indoor air quality. Objective Previously, we conducted a series of user-centered design studies to identify user needs and design requirements toward creating a mobile app that helps children with asthma to engage in monitoring and improving indoor air quality as part of their asthma management. Based on the findings from these studies, we created AirBuddy, a child-friendly app that visualizes air quality indoors and outdoors. Methods This paper reports on the findings from a field deployment with 7 pediatric asthma patients, where we evaluated AirBuddy’s usability and usefulness in real-world settings by conducting weekly semistructured interviews for 8 weeks. Results All participants positively responded to the usefulness and usability of AirBuddy, which we believe is thanks to the iterative, user-centered design approach that allowed us to identify and address potential usability issues early on and throughout the design process. Conclusions This project contributes to the field of mHealth app design for children by demonstrating how a user-centered design process can lead to the development of digital devices that are more acceptable and relevant to target users’ needs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sunyoung Kim
- Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
| | - Kaitlyn Stanton
- Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
| | - Yunoh Park
- Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
| | - Stephen Thomas
- Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
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11
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Eghomwanre AF, Oguntoke O. Concentrations of indoor gaseous air pollutants and risk factors associated with childhood asthma in Benin City, Nigeria. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT 2022; 194:391. [PMID: 35460021 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-022-10026-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2021] [Accepted: 04/05/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Pollutants from various indoor sources account for indoor air pollution mostly in developing countries and pose health risks to children. This study assessed the levels of indoor gaseous pollutants and environmental risk factors associated with asthma in children. A cross-sectional household survey was conducted among 304 children between the ages of 1 and 17 years. Indoor pollution at home was investigated using a modified international survey on asthma and allergies in childhood (ISAAC) questionnaire. Concentrations of indoor gaseous pollutants (CO, SO2 and NO2) were measured in two hundred and twenty-five randomly selected households using a MultiRae lite gas meter. The data obtained were analysed using SPSS for windows version 21.0. The risk factors for childhood asthma were obtained as odds ratios (ORs) using multivariate logistic regression. Mean concentrations of indoor gaseous pollutants ranged between 2.34-3.14 and 2.21-2.61 mg/m3 (CO), 0.02-0.05 and < 0.002-0.03 mg/m3 (NO2) and < 0.002-0.03 and < 0.002-0.02 mg/m3 (SO2) in the wet and dry seasons. The mean values of pollutants were within the WHO permissible limits. The morbidity rates of clinical asthma, physician-diagnosed asthma and recurrent wheeze in the past 12 months among the respondents were 5.6%, 2.6% and 11.8% respectively. There was no association between asthma prevalence and air pollutant exposures except with CO (R = 0.130). However, the number of occupants, family history of asthma, current smoking, use of kerosene and proximity of residence to the highway with significant (p < 0.05) odds ratios (12.4, 3.51, 2.51, 7.20 and 3.46) were independent contributors to current asthma in children. The study showed that exposure to household risk factors contributed to increased asthma among children in the study locations.
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Affiliation(s)
- A F Eghomwanre
- Faculty of Life Sciences, Department of Environmental Management and Toxicology, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria.
| | - O Oguntoke
- College of Environmental Resources Management, Department of Environmental Management and Toxicology, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria
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12
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Kim S, Kim S, Park HJ, Park S, Kim JY, Jeong YW, Yang HH, Choi Y, Yeom M, Song D, Lee C. Practical scale evaluation of a photocatalytic air purifier equipped with a Titania-zeolite composite bead filter for VOC removal and viral inactivation. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2022; 204:112036. [PMID: 34529972 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.112036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2021] [Revised: 09/04/2021] [Accepted: 09/07/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
A practical scale photocatalytic air purifier equipped with a TiO2/H-ZSM-5 composite bead filter was demonstrated to be able to effectively remove indoor volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and viruses with sustainable performances under UVA-LED illumination. TiO2 hybridized with 5 wt% H-ZSM-5 zeolite significantly enhanced its photocatalytic activity for degrading VOCs including formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, and toluene, than bare TiO2. H-ZSM-5 provided strong adsorption sites for these compounds, thus accelerating their photocatalytic conversion into CO2 by adjacent TiO2 photocatalyst. Moreover, owing to its superior adsorption capacity, the composite bead filter completely prevented the emission of formaldehyde produced by photocatalytic oxidation of toluene. The sustainability of this composite bead filter for VOC removal was confirmed by regeneration and accelerated durability tests. In addition, the photocatalytic air purifier was effective in removing aerosolized viral particles of bacteriophage Phi-X 174. It was confirmed that the viruses on filter surfaces were completely inactivated by photocatalytic oxidation. TiO2/H-ZSM-5 composite beads also exhibited excellent efficacies for inactivation of pathogenic coronaviruses including SARS-CoV-2. The photocatalytic process degraded viral RNAs of SARS-CoV-2 by more than 99.999% in 1 h, eliminating the viral infectivity. Results of this study suggest that the air purifier equipped with the composite bead filter is ready for practical applications for home and hospital uses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sungwon Kim
- Sensor Lab, Smart Device Team, Samsung Research, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., Seoul, 06756, Republic of Korea
| | - Saemi Kim
- Sensor Lab, Smart Device Team, Samsung Research, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., Seoul, 06756, Republic of Korea
| | - Hee-Jin Park
- Sensor Lab, Smart Device Team, Samsung Research, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., Seoul, 06756, Republic of Korea
| | - Soomin Park
- Sensor Lab, Smart Device Team, Samsung Research, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., Seoul, 06756, Republic of Korea
| | - Jee Yeon Kim
- Sensor Lab, Smart Device Team, Samsung Research, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., Seoul, 06756, Republic of Korea
| | - Yong Won Jeong
- Sensor Lab, Smart Device Team, Samsung Research, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., Seoul, 06756, Republic of Korea
| | - Hae Heon Yang
- R&D Team, Cosmo Catalysts Co., Ltd., Cheongju, 28438, Republic of Korea
| | - Youngsup Choi
- R&D Team, Cosmo Catalysts Co., Ltd., Cheongju, 28438, Republic of Korea
| | - Minjoo Yeom
- Department of Pharmacy, Korea University, Sejong, 30019, Republic of Korea
| | - Daesub Song
- Department of Pharmacy, Korea University, Sejong, 30019, Republic of Korea
| | - Changha Lee
- School of Chemical Engineering, Institute of Chemical Process (ICP), Institute of Engineering Research, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea.
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13
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Ha EK, Kim JH, Park D, Lee E, Lee SW, Jee HM, Shin YH, Han MY. Personal Exposure to Total VOC Is Associated With Symptoms of Atopic Dermatitis in Schoolchildren. J Korean Med Sci 2022; 37:e63. [PMID: 35226421 PMCID: PMC8885456 DOI: 10.3346/jkms.2022.37.e63] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2021] [Accepted: 01/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The urinary levels of volatile organic compound (VOC) metabolites provide individual exposure levels compared to data obtained by measuring these compounds in ambient air. We aimed to investigate the association between personal urinary concentrations of VOC metabolites and symptoms of atopic dermatitis in schoolchildren. METHODS Nine urinary VOC metabolites were analyzed from urine samples of 149 children. Diagnosis of atopic dermatitis was determined using standardized questionnaires. Pediatricians visited the schools and rated the severity of symptoms using the SCORing Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD) in all children. RESULTS Forty-five children (30.2%) had atopic dermatitis based on the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) results and 35 children (23.8%) had symptoms of atopic dermatitis with positive SCORAD index values (defined as SCORAD ≥ 5). Children with benzylmercapturic acid detected in personal urines were associated with presence of atopic dermatitis and positive SCORAD index values. Children in the highest quartile of mandelic acid concentration were associated with presence of atopic dermatitis and positive SCORAD results. CONCLUSION Personal exposure to VOCs, as indicated by urinary levels of VOC metabolites, was associated with presence of atopic dermatitis and the SCORAD index value.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eun Kyo Ha
- Department of Pediatrics, Hallym University Kangnam Sacred Heart Hospital, Seoul, Korea
| | - Ju Hee Kim
- Department of Pediatrics, Hallym University Kangdong Sacred Heart Hospital, Seoul, Korea
| | - Dawon Park
- Department of Pediatrics, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University School of Medicine, Seongnam, Korea
| | - Eun Lee
- Department of Pediatrics, Chonnam National University Hospital, Chonnam National University Medical School, Gwangju, Korea
| | - Seung Won Lee
- Department of Data Science, Sejong University College of Software Convergence, Seoul, Korea
- Department of Precision Medicine, Sungkyunkwan University School of medicine, Suwon, Korea
| | - Hye Mi Jee
- Department of Pediatrics, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University School of Medicine, Seongnam, Korea
| | - Youn Ho Shin
- Department of Pediatrics, CHA Gangnam Medical Center, CHA University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - Man Yong Han
- Department of Pediatrics, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University School of Medicine, Seongnam, Korea.
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Rhoads N, Martin S, Zimmerman FJ. Passing a Healthy Homes Initiative: Using Modeling to Inform Evidence-Based Policy Decision Making in Kansas City, Missouri. JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH MANAGEMENT AND PRACTICE 2021; 27:539-545. [PMID: 32496403 DOI: 10.1097/phh.0000000000001197] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
CONTEXT AND SETTING Kansas City, Missouri, experiences substantial racial/ethnic health disparities, particularly associated with that city's high level of residential segregation. Among the risk factors for poor health are substandard housing, particularly common in African American neighborhoods, which lead to asthma and therefore to school absences. A 2018 ballot initiative in Kansas City, Missouri, would allow health inspectors to investigate complaints of poor or hazardous conditions in rental housing. OBJECTIVES Because the Kansas City, Missouri Health Department cannot legally advocate directly for voter support of public health policies, department staff used outside consultants to demonstrate the potential positive impact of environmental initiatives. DESIGN The Win-Win model provides a standardized, unbiased economic analysis of interventions to help public health officials make informed policy and program decisions and engage in cross-sectoral collaboration. RESULTS The Win-Win model found that if an asthma home remediation program were provided for almost 7000 low-income children in Kansas City, it would result in 55 000 fewer days of missed school annually among other promising outcomes. The model also showed a $1.67 return-on-investment to local and state government for each dollar spent and a 3-year breakeven point. The results from the Win-Win model were integrated into Kansas City's Community Health Improvement Plan and made available on the Win-Win Project Web site. The proposed law to promote rental inspections passed with 57% of the vote. CONCLUSIONS The model results allowed for an informed, unbiased point of evidence that the health department could present to community groups and elected officials leading up to the vote on the health inspection initiative.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalie Rhoads
- David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, California (Ms Rhoads); Health Solutions, mySidewalk, Kansas City, Missouri (Dr Martin); and Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, California (Dr Zimmerman)
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15
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Associations between Second-Hand Tobacco Smoke Exposure and Cardiorespiratory Fitness, Physical Activity, and Respiratory Health in Children. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2021; 18:ijerph182111445. [PMID: 34769962 PMCID: PMC8582797 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph182111445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2021] [Revised: 10/22/2021] [Accepted: 10/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and physical activity (PA) are associated with a plethora of positive health effects. Many UK children fail to meet the recommended level of PA, with an observed decline in CRF levels over recent decades. Second-hand tobacco smoke (SHS) is responsible for a significant proportion of the worldwide burden of disease, but little is understood regarding the impact of SHS exposure on CRF and PA in children. The aim of this study was to test the associations between SHS exposure and CRF, PA, and respiratory health in children. METHOD Children (9-11 years) from UK primary schools in deprived areas participated (n = 104, 38 smoking households). Surveys determined household smoking, and exhaled carbon monoxide was used to indicate children's recent SHS exposure. CRF (VO2peak) was assessed via maximal treadmill protocol using breath-by-breath analysis. Fractional exhaled nitric oxide and spirometry were utilised as indicators of respiratory health. RESULTS Linear regression models demonstrated that SHS exposure was negatively associated with allometrically scaled VO2peak (B = -3.8, p = 0.030) but not PA or respiratory health. CONCLUSION The results indicate that SHS is detrimental to children's CRF; given that approximately one-third of children are regularly exposed to SHS, this important finding has implications for both public health and the sport and exercise sciences.
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16
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Kim S, Park Y, Ackerman MK. Designing an Indoor Air Quality Monitoring App for Asthma Management in Children: User-Centered Design Approach. JMIR Form Res 2021; 5:e27447. [PMID: 34550080 PMCID: PMC8495576 DOI: 10.2196/27447] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2021] [Revised: 03/15/2021] [Accepted: 05/16/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Indoor air pollution is a well-known risk factor that triggers and exacerbates asthma, the most common pediatric chronic disease. Using a mobile app to monitor indoor air quality could be promising in engaging children in keeping their indoor air quality clean and healthy as secondary environmental prevention for asthma management. However, no app is available to allow children to monitor, assess, and improve their indoor air quality. OBJECTIVE This study aims to design a mobile app that encourages children to monitor indoor air quality and track their asthma conditions through a user-centered, iterative design approach. METHODS We reviewed existing apps for indoor air quality monitoring or asthma management for children and conducted two sets of semistructured interviews with 12 children with asthma. We then iteratively created prototypes and evaluated and revised them. RESULTS Participants raised a series of outstanding questions on the prototype features and content that described their needs and perspectives, which informed the final designs. Following the identified requirements and recommendations, we developed two versions of the app: AirBuddy for presenting concrete information for indoor air quality and AirPet for gamifying the practice of monitoring indoor air quality. CONCLUSIONS By following an iterative, user-centered design process, we developed two versions of an app to encourage children with asthma to monitor indoor air quality and track their asthma condition. The user-centered design approach revealed two crucial aspects that require deeper consideration when creating a child-friendly app, including balancing brevity and expressivity and considering the longitudinal effects of gamification. As a next step, we plan to conduct a longitudinal deployment study to evaluate the real-world effects of our apps.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sunyoung Kim
- School of Communication and Information, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
| | - Yunoh Park
- Department of Computer Science, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
| | - Matthew K Ackerman
- School of Communication and Information, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
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Dai X, Liu J, Li Y. A recurrent neural network using historical data to predict time series indoor PM2.5 concentrations for residential buildings. INDOOR AIR 2021; 31:1228-1237. [PMID: 33448484 DOI: 10.1111/ina.12794] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2020] [Accepted: 12/24/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Due to the severe outdoor PM2.5 pollution in China, many people have installed air-cleaning systems in homes. To make the systems run automatically and intelligently, we developed a recurrent neural network (RNN) that uses historical data to predict the future indoor PM2.5 concentration. The RNN architecture includes an autoencoder and a recurrent part. We used data measured in an apartment over the course of an entire year to train and test the RNN. The data include indoor/outdoor PM2.5 concentration, environmental parameters and time of day. By comparing three different input strategies, we found that a strategy employing historical PM2.5 and time of day as inputs performed best. With this strategy, the model can be applied to predict the relatively stable trend of indoor PM2.5 concentration in advance. When the input length is 2 h and the prediction horizon is 30 min, the median prediction error is 8.3 µg/m3 for the whole test set. For times with indoor PM2.5 concentrations between (20,50] µg/m3 and (50,100] µg/m3 , the median prediction error is 8.3 and 9.2 µg/m3 , respectively. The low prediction error between the ground-truth and predicted values shows that the RNN can predict indoor PM2.5 concentrations with satisfactory performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xilei Dai
- Tianjin Key Lab of Indoor Air Environmental Quality Control, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Junjie Liu
- Tianjin Key Lab of Indoor Air Environmental Quality Control, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Yongle Li
- Department of Cardiology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin, China
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18
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Associations between Incense-Burning Temples and Respiratory Mortality in Hong Kong. ATMOSPHERE 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/atmos12060774] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Incense burning is an important topic facing many countries in Asia. As a highly urbanized area, the overlapping of urban functional blocks in Hong Kong has resulted in many temples being located near residential and commercial areas. Therefore, the pollutants emitted by temples’ incense burning could cause severe health problems to the population. This study identified 366 Hong Kong temples and classified them into four categories: open, semi-closed, closed, and non-active, according to their incense burning characteristics. Among them, open temples have the largest average area and least quantity. Principal component analysis (PCA) indicated that building density, greenery density, water density, and temple weight are the most highly influencing factors. The temple weight is the only loading factor with a contributing factor from PC2, especially in 2006 and 2011. Furthermore, the linear regression model has been applied to analyze the correlation between variables. Although this study did not reach conclusive results about the actual impact of each temple type, the model results confirm that the temple is a sub-factor to respiratory mortality. This provides the theoretical foundation for government policy establishment of temple construction planning and community optimization in Asian cities.
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19
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Shehab M, Pope FD, Delgado-Saborit JM. The contribution of cooking appliances and residential traffic proximity to aerosol personal exposure. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SCIENCE & ENGINEERING 2021; 19:307-318. [PMID: 34150237 PMCID: PMC8172705 DOI: 10.1007/s40201-020-00604-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2020] [Accepted: 12/15/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Indoor and outdoor factors affect personal exposure to air pollutants. Type of cooking appliance (i.e. gas, electricity), and residential location related to traffic are such factors. This research aims to investigate the effect of cooking with gas and electric appliances, as an indoor source of aerosols, and residential traffic as outdoor sources, on personal exposures to particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter lower than 2.5 μm (PM2.5), black carbon (BC), and ultrafine particles (UFP). METHODS Forty subjects were sampled for four consecutive days measuring personal exposures to three aerosol pollutants, namely PM2.5, BC, and UFP, which were measured using personal sensors. Subjects were equally distributed into four categories according to the use of gas or electric stoves for cooking, and to residential traffic (i.e. houses located near or away from busy roads). RESULTS/CONCLUSION Cooking was identified as an indoor activity affecting exposure to aerosols, with mean concentrations during cooking ranging 24.7-50.0 μg/m3 (PM2.5), 1.8-4.9 μg/m3 (BC), and 1.4 × 104-4.1 × 104 particles/cm3 (UFP). This study also suggest that traffic is a dominant source of exposure to BC, since people living near busy roads are exposed to higher BC concentrations than those living further away from traffic. In contrast, the contribution of indoor sources to personal exposure to PM2.5 and UFP seems to be greater than from outdoor traffic sources. This is probably related to a combination of the type of building construction and a varying range of activities conducted indoors. It is recommended to ensure a good ventilation during cooking to minimize exposure to cooking aerosols. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40201-020-00604-7.
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Affiliation(s)
- M. Shehab
- School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT UK
- Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), Shuwaikh Industrial, Kuwait City, Kuwait
| | - F. D. Pope
- School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT UK
| | - J. M. Delgado-Saborit
- School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT UK
- Perinatal Epidemiology, Environmental Health and Clinical Research, School of Medicine, Universitat Jaume I, Castellon, Spain
- ISGlobal Barcelona Institute for Global Health, Barcelona Biomedical Research Park, Barcelona, Spain
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20
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Ruran HB, Adamkiewicz G, Cunningham A, Petty CR, Greco KF, Gunnlaugsson S, Stamatiadis N, Sierra G, Vallarino J, Alvarez M, Hayden LP, Sheils CA, Weller E, Phipatanakul W, Gaffin JM. Air quality, Environment and Respiratory Outcomes in Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia, the AERO-BPD cohort study: design and adaptation during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. BMJ Open Respir Res 2021; 8:e000915. [PMID: 34193433 PMCID: PMC8249170 DOI: 10.1136/bmjresp-2021-000915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2021] [Accepted: 06/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Almost half of all school-age children with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) have asthma-like symptoms and more suffer from lung function deficits. While air pollution and indoor respiratory irritants are known to affect high-risk populations of children, few studies have objectively evaluated environmental contributions to long-term respiratory morbidity in this population. This study aimed to examine the role of indoor environmental exposures on respiratory morbidity in children with BPD. METHODS AND ANALYSIS The Air quality, Environment and Respiratory Ouctomes in BPD (AERO-BPD) study is a prospective, single-centre observational study that will enrol a unique cohort of 240 children with BPD and carefully characterise participants and their indoor home environmental exposures. Measures of indoor air quality constituents will assess the relationship of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), particulate matter (PM2.5), nitric oxide (NO), temperature and humidity, as well as dust concentrations of allergens, with concurrently measured respiratory symptoms and lung function.Adaptations to the research protocol due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic included remote home environment and participant assessments. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION Study protocol was approved by the Boston Children's Hospital Committee on Clinical Investigation. Dissemination will be in the form of peer-reviewed publications and participant information products. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER NCT04107701.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hana B Ruran
- Boston Children's Hospital Division of Pulmonary and Respiratory Diseases, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Gary Adamkiewicz
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard University T H Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Amparito Cunningham
- Boston Children's Hospital Division of Immunology, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Carter R Petty
- Boston Children's Hospital, Biostatistics and Research Design Center, Institutional Centers for Clinical and Translational Research, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Kimberly F Greco
- Boston Children's Hospital, Biostatistics and Research Design Center, Institutional Centers for Clinical and Translational Research, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Sigfus Gunnlaugsson
- Boston Children's Hospital Division of Pulmonary and Respiratory Diseases, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Natalie Stamatiadis
- Boston Children's Hospital Division of Pulmonary and Respiratory Diseases, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Gabriella Sierra
- Boston Children's Hospital Division of Pulmonary and Respiratory Diseases, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Jose Vallarino
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard University T H Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Marty Alvarez
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard University T H Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Lystra P Hayden
- Boston Children's Hospital Division of Pulmonary and Respiratory Diseases, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Catherine A Sheils
- Boston Children's Hospital Division of Pulmonary and Respiratory Diseases, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Edie Weller
- Boston Children's Hospital, Biostatistics and Research Design Center, Institutional Centers for Clinical and Translational Research, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Wanda Phipatanakul
- Boston Children's Hospital Division of Immunology, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Jonathan M Gaffin
- Boston Children's Hospital Division of Pulmonary and Respiratory Diseases, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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21
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Mannan M, Al-Ghamdi SG. Indoor Air Quality in Buildings: A Comprehensive Review on the Factors Influencing Air Pollution in Residential and Commercial Structure. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2021; 18:3276. [PMID: 33810001 PMCID: PMC8004912 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18063276] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2021] [Revised: 03/07/2021] [Accepted: 03/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Worldwide people tend to spend approximately 90% of their time in different indoor environments. Along with the penetration of outside air pollutants, contaminants are produced in indoor environments due to different activities such as heating, cooling, cooking, and emissions from building products and the materials used. As people spend most of their lives in indoor environments, this has a significant influence on human health and productivity. Despite the two decades of indoor air quality (IAQ) research from different perspectives, there is still a lack of comprehensive evaluation of peer-reviewed IAQ studies that specifically covers the relationship between the internal characteristics of different types of building environments with IAQ to help understand the progress and limitations of IAQ research worldwide. Therefore, this review of scientific studies presents a broad spectrum of pollutants identified in both residential and commercial indoor environments, highlighting the trends and gaps in IAQ research. Moreover, analysis of literature data enabled us to assess the different IAQs in buildings located in different countries/regions, thus reflecting the current global scientific understanding of IAQ. This review has the potential to benefit building professionals by establishing indoor air regulations that account for all indoor contaminant sources to create healthy and sustainable building environments.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sami G. Al-Ghamdi
- Division of Sustainable Development, College of Science and Engineering, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar Foundation, Doha, Qatar;
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22
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Lim H, Sadiktsis I, de Oliveira Galvão MF, Westerholm R, Dreij K. Polycyclic aromatic compounds in particulate matter and indoor dust at preschools in Stockholm, Sweden: Occurrence, sources and genotoxic potential in vitro. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 755:142709. [PMID: 33059899 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.142709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2020] [Revised: 08/28/2020] [Accepted: 09/26/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Children spend a significant amount of their day in preschool; thus, environmental quality at preschools may have an impact on children's health. In the present study, we analyzed polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs), including PAHs, alkylated PAHs and oxygenated PAHs (OPAHs), in indoor and outdoor air particulate matter (PM10) and indoor dust at preschools in Stockholm, Sweden. There were significant correlations between PAC levels in outdoor and indoor PM10, with in general higher PAC levels outdoors. Fluoranthene and pyrene were detected at highest levels in all sample types, although phenanthrene and methylated phenanthrene derivatives also were found at high levels in indoor dust. In addition, the highly carcinogenic PAHs 7H-benzo[c]fluorene, 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene, benz[j]aceanthrylene, and dibenzo[a,l]pyrene were detected in some samples. Benzanthrone was the most prevalent OPAH in PM10 samples and 9,10-anthraquinone in indoor dust. Based on diagnostic ratios and Positive Matrix Factorization we identified vehicle emission and biomass burning as important PAC sources for all samples analyzed. However, poor correlation between PAC levels in indoor PM10 and indoor dust suggested additional sources for the latter. Measuring activation of DNA damage signaling in human cells exposed to organic extracts of the samples indicated substantial genotoxic potential of outdoor PM10 and indoor dust. Determination of benzo[a]pyrene equivalents demonstrated that the highly potent PAHs benz[j]aceanthrylene and dibenz[a,h]anthracene contributed more than 20% to the total carcinogenic potency of the samples. We conclude that PAC levels at Stockholm preschools are relatively low but that outdoor air quality may impact on the indoor environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hwanmi Lim
- Department of Materials and Environmental Chemistry, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden.
| | - Ioannis Sadiktsis
- Department of Materials and Environmental Chemistry, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Roger Westerholm
- Department of Materials and Environmental Chemistry, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Kristian Dreij
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Box 210, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden.
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Lockdown Boredom in COVID-19 Pandemic: As a Cause of Pediatric Foreign Bodies. Indian J Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2020; 74:2799-2800. [PMID: 33251126 PMCID: PMC7680559 DOI: 10.1007/s12070-020-02262-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2020] [Accepted: 11/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
COVID-19 has been impacting a large number of people worldwide. In this lockdown has restricted people to stay at
home which is likely to impact their physical and mental health especially children can result in a high prevalence of psychological distress. Long term home isolation has potentially increased the risk of domestic accidents in children like lodgment of foreign bodies in Ear, Nose and Throat. Otolaryngologists are at increased risk of getting the infection due to their direct exposure to the airways of the patient, while removing foreign bodies. Preoperative planning and SARS-CoV2 testing is of particular importance for the pediatric population and if testing cannot be performed, patients in all age groups should be handled as though they are positive for COVID-19, and appropriate precautions should be taken.
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Zhao G, Zou J, Zhang T, Li C, Zhou S, Jiao F. Recent progress on removal of indoor air pollutants by catalytic oxidation. REVIEWS ON ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH 2020; 35:311-321. [PMID: 32598323 DOI: 10.1515/reveh-2019-0102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2019] [Accepted: 05/11/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Indoor air pollutant is a serious problem due to its wide diversity and variability. The harmful substances from construction materials and decorative materials may make the indoor air pollution become more and more serious and cause serious health problems. In this paper, the review summarizes the advanced technologies for the removal of indoor air pollutants and the development in the treatment of indoor air pollution by catalytic oxidation technologies. Meanwhile, some catalytic oxidation mechanisms of indoor air pollutants are proposed in detail, and suggestions for the indoor air pollution treatment are also presented, in order to provide some reference for subsequent research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guoqing Zhao
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Central South University, Changsha, 410083, People's Republic of China
| | - Jiao Zou
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Central South University, Changsha, 410083, People's Republic of China
| | - Taiheng Zhang
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Central South University, Changsha, 410083, People's Republic of China
| | - Caifeng Li
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Central South University, Changsha, 410083, People's Republic of China
| | - Shu Zhou
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Central South University, Changsha, 410083, People's Republic of China
| | - Feipeng Jiao
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Central South University, Changsha, 410083, People's Republic of China
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A Systematic Review of Air Quality Sensors, Guidelines, and Measurement Studies for Indoor Air Quality Management. SUSTAINABILITY 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/su12219045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The existence of indoor air pollutants—such as ozone, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, particulate matter, and total volatile organic compounds—is evidently a critical issue for human health. Over the past decade, various international agencies have continually refined and updated the quantitative air quality guidelines and standards in order to meet the requirements for indoor air quality management. This paper first provides a systematic review of the existing air quality guidelines and standards implemented by different agencies, which include the Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS); the World Health Organization (WHO); the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA); the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH); the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE); the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH); and the California ambient air quality standards (CAAQS). It then adds to this by providing a state-of-art review of the existing low-cost air quality sensor (LCAQS) technologies, and analyzes the corresponding specifications, such as the typical detection range, measurement tolerance or repeatability, data resolution, response time, supply current, and market price. Finally, it briefly reviews a sequence (array) of field measurement studies, which focuses on the technical measurement characteristics and their data analysis approaches.
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Exploring Volatile Organic Compound Exposure and Its Association with Wheezing in Children under 36 Months: A Cross-Sectional Study in South Lisbon, Portugal. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2020; 17:ijerph17186929. [PMID: 32971966 PMCID: PMC7559785 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17186929] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2020] [Revised: 09/16/2020] [Accepted: 09/18/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Air quality and other environmental factors are gaining importance in public health policies. Some volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have been associated with asthma and symptoms of respiratory disease such as wheezing. The aim of this study was to measure the concentration of Total VOCs and assess their possible association with the occurrence of wheezing episodes in children under 36 months of age, in a region south of Lisbon, Portugal. A cross-sectional study was performed from October 2015 to March 2016. The sample of children under 36 months of age was selected by convenience, by inviting parents to take part in the study. A survey was applied to collect information on bedroom features, as well as to verify the occurrence of wheezing episodes. The indoor air quality parameters of bedrooms were measured using three 3M Quest® EVM-7 environmental monitors. In total, 34.4% of infants had had wheezing episodes since birth, with 86.7% of these presenting at least one episode in the previous 12 months. Total VOC levels were above the reference values in 48% of the analyzed bedrooms. No significant association of VOC exposure in a domestic setting with episodes of wheezing was found. However, children living in households with smokers were 4 times more likely to develop wheezing episodes. Thus, this study provides relevant information that warrants further studies to assess infant exposure to indoor air pollution and parental smoking in a residential context.
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Enhanced Visible and Ultraviolet Light-Induced Gas-Phase Photocatalytic Activity of TiO2 Thin Films Modified by Increased Amount of Acetylacetone in Precursor Solution for Spray Pyrolysis. Catalysts 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/catal10091011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
TiO2 thin films, modified by acetylacetone (AcacH) in solution, were deposited on glass substrate by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis and tested for photocatalytic activity in a multi-section continuous flow reactor by degradation of acetone and acetaldehyde under ultraviolet and visible light. The increase in molar ratio of AcacH in respect of titanium (IV) isopropoxide (TTIP) from 1:5 to 1:8 modified the electronic structure of the films, favoring enhanced photocatalytic activity. The photocatalytic activity was enhanced approximately twofold on the film with molar ratio 1:8 under both irradiations; the film completely oxidized 10 ppm of acetone and acetaldehyde. The photocatalytic efficacy of TiO2 films in oxidation of air pollutants was three times higher compared to the industrial glass Pilkington ActivTM. Moreover, all the synthesized films indicate antibacterial efficiency against E. coli of over 99% under ultraviolet. TiO2 film, with TTIP:AcacH molar ratio 1:8 having great possibility for its commercial use as a material for indoor air purification.
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28
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Lu C, Norbäck D, Li Y, Deng Q. Early-life exposure to air pollution and childhood allergic diseases: an update on the link and its implications. Expert Rev Clin Immunol 2020; 16:813-827. [PMID: 32741235 DOI: 10.1080/1744666x.2020.1804868] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Although mounting evidence has linked environmental factors with childhood allergies, some specific key issues still remain unclear: what is the main environmental factor? what is the critical timing window? And whether these contribute to the development of disease? AREAS COVERED This selective review summarizes recent epidemiological studies on the association between early-life exposure to indoor/outdoor air pollution and childhood allergic diseases. A literature search was conducted in the PubMed and Web of Science for peer-reviewed articles published until April 2020. Exposure to the traffic-related air pollutant, NO2, exposure during pregnancy and early postnatal periods is found to be associated with childhood allergies, and exposure during different trimesters causes different allergic diseases. However, exposure to classical air pollutants (PM10 and SO2) also contributes to childhood allergy in developing countries. In addition, early-life exposure to indoor renovation and mold/dampness significantly increases the risk of allergy in children. A synergistic effect between indoor and outdoor air pollution is found in the development of allergic diseases. EXPERT OPINION Early-life exposure to outdoor air pollution and indoor environmental factors plays an important role in the development of childhood allergic diseases, and the synergy between indoor and outdoor exposures increases allergy risk. The available findings support the hypothesis of the 'fetal origins of childhood allergy,' with new implications for the effective control and early prevention of childhood allergies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chan Lu
- XiangYa School of Public Health, Central South University , Changsha, China.,Hunan Engineering Research Center of Early Life Development and Disease Prevention, XiangYa Hospital, Central South University , Changsha, China
| | - Dan Norbäck
- Department of Medical Sciences, Uppsala University , Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Yuguo Li
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Hong Kong , Hong Kong, China
| | - Qihong Deng
- XiangYa School of Public Health, Central South University , Changsha, China.,Hunan Engineering Research Center of Early Life Development and Disease Prevention, XiangYa Hospital, Central South University , Changsha, China.,School of Energy Science and Engineering, Central South University , Changsha, China
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29
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Effect of the Pandemic and Lockdown on Mental Health of Children. Indian J Pediatr 2020; 87:552. [PMID: 32394157 PMCID: PMC7214231 DOI: 10.1007/s12098-020-03308-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2020] [Accepted: 04/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
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30
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Yuan Y, Alahmad B, Kang CM, Al-Marri F, Kommula V, Bouhamra W, Koutrakis P. Dust Events and Indoor Air Quality in Residential Homes in Kuwait. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2020; 17:ijerph17072433. [PMID: 32260094 PMCID: PMC7178282 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17072433] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2020] [Revised: 03/29/2020] [Accepted: 03/31/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Kuwait is a developed Middle Eastern country that is impacted by frequent dust storms from regional and/or remote deserts. The effectiveness of keeping homes tightly closed during these events to reduce dust exposures was assessed using indoor and outdoor particle samples at 10 residences within the metropolitan Kuwait City area. Specifically, this study compared indoor and outdoor levels of black carbon and 19 trace elements (Na, Mg, Al, Si, S, Cl, K, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Br, Sr, and Zr) during dust and non-dust events and found that particle penetration efficiencies were lower during dust storm events (less than 20–30%) than during non-dust storm events (40–60%). Coarse particles had lower penetration efficiency compared to fine particles, which is due to differences in infiltration rates and settling velocities between these two size fractions. Our findings suggest that increasing home insulation could be an effective strategy to reduce indoor exposure to crustal particles from dust storm events in residential houses of Kuwait City.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yufei Yuan
- Environmental Health Department, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02215, USA; (B.A.); (C.-M.K.); (P.K.)
- Correspondence:
| | - Barrak Alahmad
- Environmental Health Department, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02215, USA; (B.A.); (C.-M.K.); (P.K.)
- Environmental and Occupational Health Department, Faculty of Public Health, Kuwait University, 12037 Kuwait City, Kuwait
| | - Choong-Min Kang
- Environmental Health Department, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02215, USA; (B.A.); (C.-M.K.); (P.K.)
| | - Fhaid Al-Marri
- Environmental Lab, Hawalli, Al-Rehab Complex, 36141 Kuwait City, Kuwait; (F.A.-M.); (V.K.)
| | - Venkateswarlu Kommula
- Environmental Lab, Hawalli, Al-Rehab Complex, 36141 Kuwait City, Kuwait; (F.A.-M.); (V.K.)
| | - Walid Bouhamra
- President, Gulf University for Science and Technology (GUST), 32093 Kuwait City, Kuwait;
| | - Petros Koutrakis
- Environmental Health Department, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02215, USA; (B.A.); (C.-M.K.); (P.K.)
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31
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Mugherli L, Lety-Stefanska A, Landreau N, Tomasi RFX, Baroud CN. Quantifying the sol-gel process and detecting toxic gas in an array of anchored microfluidic droplets. LAB ON A CHIP 2020; 20:236-243. [PMID: 31746881 DOI: 10.1039/c9lc00750d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The detection of toxic gases is becoming an important element in tackling increased air pollution. This has led to the development of gas sensors based on porous solid materials, which are produced using sol-gel chemistry and functionalized to change their optical qualities when in contact with the gas. In this context it is interesting to explore how microfluidics can be used to miniaturize these sensors, to improve their sensitivity and dynamic range, or to multiplex many gas measurements on a single chip. In this article we show how the sol-gel process can be implemented using anchored droplet microfluidics. The sensor material is partitioned into droplets while in the sol phase and maintained using capillary anchors. The ability to hold the droplets in place first allows us to study the sol-gel process. We use an original rheology method, which consists of observing the flows within stationary droplets that are submitted to an external flow, to measure the gelation time of the droplets. These measurements show a gelation time that decreases from 50 minutes to below 10 minutes as the temperature increases from 20 to 50 °C. We also measure the shrinkage of individual gel beads after gelation and find that this syneresis process is nearly finished after about 12 hours, leading to a final bead size that is 50% smaller than the initial droplet. Finally, we show that the beads can be functionalized and used to detect the presence of formaldehyde. These results first provide a new way to observe the physics of the sol-gel process in a well-controlled and quantitative fashion. Moreover they highlight how the coupling of microfluidics and sol-gel chemistry can be used to detect toxic gases, in view of answering the challenges surrounding gas detection in real-world settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurent Mugherli
- NIMBE, CEA, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, CEA Saclay, 91191 Gif sur Yvette Cedex, France.
| | | | - Nina Landreau
- NIMBE, CEA, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, CEA Saclay, 91191 Gif sur Yvette Cedex, France.
| | - Raphael F-X Tomasi
- LadHyX and Department of Mechanics, Ecole Polytechnique, CNRS, 91128 Palaiseau, France.
| | - Charles N Baroud
- LadHyX and Department of Mechanics, Ecole Polytechnique, CNRS, 91128 Palaiseau, France. and Physical Microfluidics and Bioengineerng, Institut Pasteur, 25-28 Rue du Dr. Roux, 75015 Paris, France
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Anitha GFS, Narasimhan U. Coronavirus disease 2019 and the inevitable increase in screen time among Indian children: Is going digital the way forward? Ind Psychiatry J 2020; 29:171-175. [PMID: 33776293 PMCID: PMC7989449 DOI: 10.4103/ipj.ipj_131_20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2020] [Accepted: 08/18/2020] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Abstract
The world is facing an unprecedented crisis due to the Coronavirus disease catastrophe. The pandemic has been ravaging for the past six months claiming human lives, causing financial loss, and job insecurity. Children are susceptible to the psychosocial aspects of this pandemic. Being locked indoors there is exorbitant media exposure among children. The debate of digital media technology is now challenged by the pandemic. Digital technology is a boon during this crisis being a platform for both education and recreation. In the background of this inadvertent increases screen exposure we discuss the various health concerns and the need to balance media appropriately to carry it forward during this crisis which shows no sign of waning.
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Affiliation(s)
- G Fatima Shirly Anitha
- Department of Pediatrics, Karthikeyan Child Development Unit, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Udayakumar Narasimhan
- Department of Pediatrics, Karthikeyan Child Development Unit, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
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Li M, Gao S, Lu F, Tong H, Zhang H. Dynamic Estimation of Individual Exposure Levels to Air Pollution Using Trajectories Reconstructed from Mobile Phone Data. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2019; 16:E4522. [PMID: 31731743 PMCID: PMC6888556 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph16224522] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2019] [Revised: 11/11/2019] [Accepted: 11/13/2019] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
The spatiotemporal variability in air pollutant concentrations raises challenges in linking air pollution exposure to individual health outcomes. Thus, understanding the spatiotemporal patterns of human mobility plays an important role in air pollution epidemiology and health studies. With the advantages of massive users, wide spatial coverage and passive acquisition capability, mobile phone data have become an emerging data source for compiling exposure estimates. However, compared with air pollution monitoring data, the temporal granularity of mobile phone data is not high enough, which limits the performance of individual exposure estimation. To mitigate this problem, we present a novel method of estimating dynamic individual air pollution exposure levels using trajectories reconstructed from mobile phone data. Using the city of Shanghai as a case study, we compared three different types of exposure estimates using (1) reconstructed mobile phone trajectories, (2) recorded mobile phone trajectories, and (3) residential locations. The results demonstrate the necessity of trajectory reconstruction in exposure and health risk assessment. Additionally, we measure the potential health effects of air pollution from both individual and geographical perspectives. This helped reveal the temporal variations in individual exposures and the spatial distribution of residential areas with high exposure levels. The proposed method allows us to perform large-area and long-term exposure estimations for a large number of residents at a high spatiotemporal resolution, which helps support policy-driven environmental actions and reduce potential health risks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mingxiao Li
- State Key Laboratory of Resources and Environmental Information System, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; (M.L.); (F.L.)
- University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
- Geospatial Data Science Lab, Department of Geography, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA;
| | - Song Gao
- Geospatial Data Science Lab, Department of Geography, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA;
| | - Feng Lu
- State Key Laboratory of Resources and Environmental Information System, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; (M.L.); (F.L.)
- The Academy of Digital China, Fuzhou University, Fuzhou 350002, China
- Jiangsu Center for Collaborative Innovation in Geographical Information Resource Development and Application, Nanjing 210023, China
| | - Huan Tong
- UCL Institute for Environmental Design and Engineering, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK;
| | - Hengcai Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Resources and Environmental Information System, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; (M.L.); (F.L.)
- The Academy of Digital China, Fuzhou University, Fuzhou 350002, China
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34
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Yun J, Ahn JH, Moon DI, Choi YK, Park I. Joule-Heated and Suspended Silicon Nanowire Based Sensor for Low-Power and Stable Hydrogen Detection. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2019; 11:42349-42357. [PMID: 31617994 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.9b15111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
We developed self-heated, suspended, and palladium-decorated silicon nanowires (Pd-SiNWs) for high-performance hydrogen (H2) gas sensing with low power consumption and high stability against diverse environmental noises. To prepare the Pd-SiNWs, SiNWs were fabricated by conventional complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) processes, and Pd nanoparticles were coated on the SiNWs by a physical vapor deposition method. Suspended Pd-SiNWs were simply obtained by etching buried oxide layer and Pd deposition. Joule heating of Pd-SiNW (<1 mW) enables the detection of H2 gas with a faster response and without the reduction of sensitivity unlike other Pd-based H2 gas sensors. We proposed a H2 sensing model using oxygen adsorption on the Pd nanoparticle-coated silicon oxide surface to understand the H2 response of Joule-heated Pd-SiNWs. A suspended Pd-SiNW showed a similar transient sensing response with around four times lower Joule heating power (147 μW) than the substrate-bound Pd-SiNW (613 μW). The effect of interfering gas on the Pd-SiNW was investigated, and it was found that the Joule heating of Pd-SiNW helps to maintain the H2 sensing performance in humid or carbon monoxide environments.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jae-Hyuk Ahn
- Department of Electronic Engineering , Kwangwoon University , Seoul 01897 , Republic of Korea
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35
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Hui N, Parajuli A, Puhakka R, Grönroos M, Roslund MI, Vari HK, Selonen VAO, Yan G, Siter N, Nurminen N, Oikarinen S, Laitinen OH, Rajaniemi J, Hyöty H, Sinkkonen A. Temporal variation in indoor transfer of dirt-associated environmental bacteria in agricultural and urban areas. ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL 2019; 132:105069. [PMID: 31400602 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2019.105069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2019] [Revised: 07/28/2019] [Accepted: 07/29/2019] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
An agricultural environment and exposure to diverse environmental microbiota has been suggested to confer protection against immune-mediated disorders. As an agricultural environment may have a protective role, it is crucial to determine whether the limiting factors in the transfer of environmental microbiota indoors are the same in the agricultural and urban environments. We explored how sampling month, garden diversity and animal ownership affected the indoor-transfer of environmental microbial community. We collected litter from standardized doormats used for 2 weeks in June and August 2015 and February 2016 and identified bacterial phylotypes using 16S rRNA Illumina MiSeq sequencing. In February, the diversity and richness of the whole bacterial community and the relative abundance of environment-associated taxa were reduced, whereas human-associated taxa and genera containing opportunistic pathogens were enriched in the doormats. In summer, the relative abundances of several taxa associated previously with beneficial health effects were higher, particularly in agricultural areas. Surprisingly, the importance of vegetation on doormat microbiota was more observable in February, which may have resulted from snow cover that prevented contact with microbes in soil. Animal ownership increased the prevalence of genera Bacteroides and Acinetobacter in rural doormats. These findings underline the roles of season, living environment and lifestyle in the temporal variations in the environmental microbial community carried indoors. As reduced contact with diverse microbiota is a potential reason for immune system dysfunction, the results may have important implications in the etiology of immune-mediated, non-communicable diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nan Hui
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
| | - Anirudra Parajuli
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland.
| | - Riikka Puhakka
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
| | - Mira Grönroos
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
| | - Marja I Roslund
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
| | - Heli K Vari
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
| | - Ville A O Selonen
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
| | - Guoyang Yan
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
| | - Nathan Siter
- Faculty of Built Environment, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
| | - Noora Nurminen
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
| | - Sami Oikarinen
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
| | - Olli H Laitinen
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
| | - Juho Rajaniemi
- Faculty of Built Environment, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
| | - Heikki Hyöty
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
| | - Aki Sinkkonen
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland.
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Franklin P, Tan M, Hemy N, Hall GL. Maternal Exposure to Indoor Air Pollution and Birth Outcomes. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2019; 16:E1364. [PMID: 30995726 PMCID: PMC6518425 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph16081364] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2019] [Accepted: 04/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
There is a growing body of research on the association between ambient air pollution and adverse birth outcomes. However, people in high income countries spend most of their time indoors. Pregnant women spend much of that time at home. The aim of this study was to investigate if indoor air pollutants were associated with poor birth outcomes. Pregnant women were recruited prior to 18 weeks gestation. They completed a housing questionnaire and household chemical use survey. Indoor pollutants, formaldehyde (HCHO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), were monitored in the women's homes at 34 weeks gestation. Gestational age (GA), birth weight (BW) and length (BL) and head circumference (HC) were collected from birth records. The associations between measured pollutants, and pollution surrogates, were analysed using general linear models, controlling for maternal age, parity, maternal health, and season of birth. Only HCHO was associated with any of the birth outcomes. There was a 0.044 decrease in BW z-score (p = 0.033) and 0.05 decrease in HC z-score (p = 0.06) for each unit increase in HCHO. Although HCHO concentrations were very low, this finding is consistent with other studies of formaldehyde and poor birth outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Franklin
- School of Population and Global Health, Faculty of Health and Medicine Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia.
| | - Mark Tan
- School of Paediatrics and Child Health, Faculty of Health and Medicine Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia.
- Telethon Kids Institute, Nedlands, WA 6009, Australia.
| | - Naomi Hemy
- Telethon Kids Institute, Nedlands, WA 6009, Australia.
| | - Graham L Hall
- Telethon Kids Institute, Nedlands, WA 6009, Australia.
- School of Physiotherapy and Exercise Science, Curtin University, Bentley, WA 6102, Australia.
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37
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Posis A, Bellettiere J, Liles S, Alcaraz J, Nguyen B, Berardi V, Klepeis NE, Hughes SC, Wu T, Hovell MF. Indoor cannabis smoke and children's health. Prev Med Rep 2019; 14:100853. [PMID: 30976488 PMCID: PMC6441784 DOI: 10.1016/j.pmedr.2019.100853] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2018] [Revised: 02/07/2019] [Accepted: 03/14/2019] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Cannabis use is increasing and cannabis is typically consumed by smoking. This study explored how indoor secondhand cannabis smoke (SCS) was associated with child health. As part of a larger trial, air particle monitors were placed in 298 homes of families with at least one cigarette smoker and one child under 14 years old in San Diego County, California. Assessment included past 7-day indoor cigarette and cannabis use, the youngest child's exposure to cigarette smoke, and 5 smoke-related past-year child health outcomes: emergency department use for coughing/difficulty breathing; physician diagnosis of ear infection, bronchitis/bronchiolitis, asthma, or eczema/atopic dermatitis. An ordinal measure of adverse health outcomes (0, 1, or ≥2) was regressed on reported indoor cannabis smoking—the main measure of exposure (yes/no). Of 221 parents/guardians asked about cannabis use, 192 (86.9%) provided all required data, and 29 (15.1%) reported indoor cannabis smoking; reports were supported by air particle data. Homes without indoor smoking had lower average 7-day particle concentrations (1968 particles/0.01ft3) than homes with cannabis smoking only (3131 particles/0.01ft3), cigarette smoking only (3095 particles/0.01ft3), or both cigarette and cannabis smoking (6006 particles/0.01ft3). Odds of reporting a greater number of adverse health outcomes were 1.83 (95% CI = 0.89–3.80, p = 0.10) times higher for children of families with indoor cannabis smoking vs families without cannabis smoking, after controlling for exposure to cigarette smoke and other covariates. Our results do not indicate a statistically significant association. However, the magnitude of the (non-significant) association between indoor cannabis smoking and adverse health outcomes warrants more studies. Indoor cannabis smoking raises particle levels and risk of child particle exposure. Smoking cannabis in-home may adversely impact child health. This adverse impact may occur in homes with or without indoor cigarette smoking. Health effects of secondhand cannabis smoke exposure need to be further explored.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Posis
- Center for Behavioral Epidemiology and Community Health (C-BEACH), Graduate School of Public Health, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA
- Corresponding author at: Center for Behavioral Epidemiology and Community Health, 9245 Sky Park Court, San Diego, CA 92123, USA.
| | - John Bellettiere
- Center for Behavioral Epidemiology and Community Health (C-BEACH), Graduate School of Public Health, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA
- Department of Family Medicine and Public Health, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Corresponding author.
| | - Sandy Liles
- Center for Behavioral Epidemiology and Community Health (C-BEACH), Graduate School of Public Health, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - John Alcaraz
- Graduate School of Public Health, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Benjamin Nguyen
- Center for Behavioral Epidemiology and Community Health (C-BEACH), Graduate School of Public Health, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Vincent Berardi
- Center for Behavioral Epidemiology and Community Health (C-BEACH), Graduate School of Public Health, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA
- Department of Psychology, Chapman University, CA, USA
| | - Neil E. Klepeis
- Center for Behavioral Epidemiology and Community Health (C-BEACH), Graduate School of Public Health, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Suzanne C. Hughes
- Center for Behavioral Epidemiology and Community Health (C-BEACH), Graduate School of Public Health, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Tianying Wu
- Graduate School of Public Health, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Melbourne F. Hovell
- Center for Behavioral Epidemiology and Community Health (C-BEACH), Graduate School of Public Health, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA
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Fu Z, Li Y, Chu J, Sun J, Lu Z, Zhang J, Chen X, Zhang G, Xue F, Guo X, Xu A. Lung cancer mortality clusters in urban and rural areas of Shandong Province, China: A spatial scan statistical analysis. PRECISION RADIATION ONCOLOGY 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/pro6.62] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Zhentao Fu
- Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention Jinan China
| | - Yingmei Li
- The Second People's Hospital of Jinan Jinan China
| | - Jie Chu
- Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention Jinan China
| | - Jiandong Sun
- School of Public Health and Social WorkQueensland University of Technology Brisbane Queensland Australia
| | - Zilong Lu
- Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention Jinan China
| | - Jiyu Zhang
- Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention Jinan China
| | - Xianxian Chen
- Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention Jinan China
| | - Gaohui Zhang
- Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention Jinan China
| | - Fuzhong Xue
- School of Public HealthShandong University Jinan China
| | - Xiaolei Guo
- Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention Jinan China
| | - Aiqiang Xu
- Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention Jinan China
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Oliveira M, Slezakova K, Delerue-Matos C, Pereira MC, Morais S. Children environmental exposure to particulate matter and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and biomonitoring in school environments: A review on indoor and outdoor exposure levels, major sources and health impacts. ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL 2019; 124:180-204. [PMID: 30654326 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2018.12.052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 155] [Impact Index Per Article: 31.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2018] [Revised: 12/20/2018] [Accepted: 12/21/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Children, an important vulnerable group, spend most of their time at schools (up to 10 h per day, mostly indoors) and the respective air quality may significantly impact on children health. Thus, this work reviews the published studies on children biomonitoring and environmental exposure to particulate matter (PM) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) at school microenvironments (indoors and outdoors), major sources and potential health risks. A total of 28, 35, and 31% of the studies reported levels that exceeded the international outdoor ambient air guidelines for PM10, PM2.5, and benzo(a)pyrene, respectively. Indoor and outdoor concentrations of PM10 at European schools, the most characterized continent, ranged between 7.5 and 229 μg/m3 and 21-166 μg/m3, respectively; levels of PM2.5 varied between 4 and 100 μg/m3 indoors and 6.1-115 μg/m3 outdoors. Despite scarce information in some geographical regions (America, Oceania and Africa), the collected data clearly show that Asian children are exposed to the highest concentrations of PM and PAHs at school environments, which were associated with increased carcinogenic risks and with the highest values of urinary total monohydroxyl PAH metabolites (PAH biomarkers of exposure). Additionally, children attending schools in polluted urban and industrial areas are exposed to higher levels of PM and PAHs with increased concentrations of urinary PAH metabolites in comparison with children from rural areas. Strong evidences demonstrated associations between environmental exposure to PM and PAHs with several health outcomes, including increased risk of asthma, pulmonary infections, skin diseases, and allergies. Nevertheless, there is a scientific gap on studies that include the characterization of PM fine fraction and the levels of PAHs in the total air (particulate and gas phases) of indoor and outdoor air of school environments and the associated risks for the health of children. There is a clear need to improve indoor air quality in schools and to establish international guidelines for exposure limits in these environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marta Oliveira
- REQUIMTE/LAQV, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Instituto Politécnico do Porto, Porto, Portugal; LEPABE, Departamento de Engenharia Química, Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Klara Slezakova
- REQUIMTE/LAQV, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Instituto Politécnico do Porto, Porto, Portugal; LEPABE, Departamento de Engenharia Química, Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Cristina Delerue-Matos
- REQUIMTE/LAQV, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Instituto Politécnico do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Maria Carmo Pereira
- LEPABE, Departamento de Engenharia Química, Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Simone Morais
- REQUIMTE/LAQV, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Instituto Politécnico do Porto, Porto, Portugal.
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Deng L, Deng Q. The basic roles of indoor plants in human health and comfort. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2018; 25:36087-36101. [PMID: 30387059 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-018-3554-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2018] [Accepted: 10/22/2018] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
Humans have a close relationship with nature, and so integrating the nature world into indoor space could effectively increase people's engagement with nature, and this in turn may benefit their health and comfort. Since people spend 80-90% of their time indoors, the indoor environment is very important for their health. Indoor plants are part of natural indoor environment, but their effect on the indoor environment and on humans has not been quantified. This review provides a comprehensive summary of the role and importance of indoor plants in human health and comfort according to the following four criteria: photosynthesis; transpiration; psychological effects; and purification. Photosynthesis and transpiration are important mechanisms for plants, and the basic functions maintaining the carbon and oxygen cycles in nature. Above all have potential inspiration to human's activities that people often ignored, for example, the application of solar panel, artificial photosynthesis, and green roof/facades were motivated by those functions. Indoor plants have also been shown to have indirect unconscious psychological effect on task performance, health, and levels of stress. Indoor plants can act as indoor air purifiers, they are an effective way to reduce pollutants indoor to reduce human exposure, and have been widely studied in this regard. Indoor plants have potential applications in other fields, including sensing, solar energy, acoustic, and people's health and comfort. Making full use of various effects in plants benefit human health and comfort.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linjing Deng
- School of Energy Science and Engineering, Central South University, Changsha, 410083, China
| | - Qihong Deng
- School of Energy Science and Engineering, Central South University, Changsha, 410083, China.
- XiangYa School of Public Health, Central South University, Changsha, 410078, Hunan, China.
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Wang YH, Su HH, Hsu L, Wang CY, Wu PH. Correlation between Novel Potential Indoor Risk Factors and Frequency of Doctor's Visit for Respiratory Problem in Taiwan's Tropical Environment. THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OCCUPATIONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL MEDICINE 2018; 9:10-22. [PMID: 29319051 PMCID: PMC6466971 DOI: 10.15171/ijoem.2018.1143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2017] [Accepted: 11/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND With a global rising trend in prevalence of allergic diseases, more attention has been paid to investigation of environmental risk factors. Many risk factors have so far been identified. However, novel risk factors specific to Taiwanese environment and lifestyle were still relatively unknown. OBJECTIVE To investigate the potential effects of a number of little-known indoor risk factors on the frequency of doctor's visit for respiratory problems in context of Taiwanese environment and lifestyle. METHODS A cross-sectional, population-based study was performed on a 861 participants around Kaohsiung area, Taiwan. Survey investigation was employed to assess the household environment and the frequency of doctor's visit for respiratory problems. RESULTS Participants who performed "daily cleaning" was shown to have a significantly (p=0.007) higher mean number of doctor's visits in comparison to those who did not. Similar observation was made for participants who periodically took out beddings (p=0.042). Age had a significant positive correlation (linear regression β 0.089) with frequency of respiratory problems. CONCLUSION The habit of daily cleaning was implicated as a potential indoor risk factor due to the unique nature of Taiwanese cleaning habit and close contact with cleaning supplies, which could serve as chemical irritants. Bedding takeout was predicted to be an indicator of chronic allergies rather than an actual risk factor. However, both were controversial in their role as potential indoor risk factor, and required further examination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu-Hao Wang
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Rochester, NY 14642, USA
| | - Hsing-Hao Su
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Kaohsiung 813, Taiwan, ROC
| | - Lan Hsu
- Department of Dermatology, Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Kaohsiung 813, Taiwan, ROC
| | | | - Pi-Hsiung Wu
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Pingtung Branch, Pingtung 91245, Taiwan, ROC.
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Wang Y, Zhao Z, Li G, Yan Y, Hao C. A 2D covalent organic framework as a sensor for detecting formaldehyde. J Mol Model 2018; 24:153. [DOI: 10.1007/s00894-018-3676-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2017] [Accepted: 05/14/2018] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
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Gaffin JM, Hauptman M, Petty CR, Sheehan WJ, Lai PS, Wolfson JM, Gold DR, Coull BA, Koutrakis P, Phipatanakul W. Nitrogen dioxide exposure in school classrooms of inner-city children with asthma. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2018; 141:2249-2255.e2. [PMID: 28988796 PMCID: PMC5886827 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaci.2017.08.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2017] [Revised: 06/27/2017] [Accepted: 08/24/2017] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Ambient and home exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2) causes asthma symptoms and decreased lung function in children with asthma. Little is known about the health effects of school classroom pollution exposure. OBJECTIVE We aimed to determine the effect of indoor classroom NO2 on lung function and symptoms in inner-city school children with asthma. METHODS Children enrolled in the School Inner-City Asthma Study were followed for 1 academic year. Subjects performed spirometry and had fraction of exhaled nitric oxide values measured twice during the school year at school. Classroom NO2 was collected by means of passive sampling for 1-week periods twice per year, coinciding with lung function testing. Generalized estimating equation models assessed lung function and symptom relationships with the temporally nearest classroom NO2 level. RESULTS The mean NO2 value was 11.1 ppb (range, 4.3-29.7 ppb). In total, exposure data were available for 296 subjects, 188 of whom had complete spirometric data. At greater than a threshold of 8 ppb of NO2 and after adjusting for race and season (spirometry standardized by age, height, and sex), NO2 levels were associated highly with airflow obstruction, such that each 10-ppb increase in NO2 level was associated with a 5% decrease in FEV1/forced vital capacity ratio (β = -0.05; 95% CI, -0.08 to -0.02; P = .01). Percent predicted forced expiratory flow between the 25th and 75th percentile of forced vital capacity was also inversely associated with higher NO2 exposure (β = -22.8; 95% CI, -36.0 to -9.7; P = .01). There was no significant association of NO2 levels with percent predicted FEV1, fraction of exhaled nitric oxide, or asthma symptoms. Additionally, there was no effect modification of atopy on lung function or symptom outcomes. CONCLUSION In children with asthma, indoor classroom NO2 levels can be associated with increased airflow obstruction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan M Gaffin
- Division of Respiratory Diseases, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Mass; Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass
| | - Marissa Hauptman
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass; Division of General Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Mass
| | - Carter R Petty
- Clinical Research Center, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Mass
| | - William J Sheehan
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass; Division of Allergy and Immunology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Mass
| | - Peggy S Lai
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass; Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Mass; Department of Environmental Health, Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Mass
| | - Jack M Wolfson
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Mass
| | - Diane R Gold
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Mass; Channing Institute of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Mass
| | - Brent A Coull
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Mass
| | - Petros Koutrakis
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Mass
| | - Wanda Phipatanakul
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass; Division of Allergy and Immunology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Mass.
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Parajuli A, Grönroos M, Siter N, Puhakka R, Vari HK, Roslund MI, Jumpponen A, Nurminen N, Laitinen OH, Hyöty H, Rajaniemi J, Sinkkonen A. Urbanization Reduces Transfer of Diverse Environmental Microbiota Indoors. Front Microbiol 2018; 9:84. [PMID: 29467728 PMCID: PMC5808279 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2018.00084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2017] [Accepted: 01/12/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Expanding urbanization is a major factor behind rapidly declining biodiversity. It has been proposed that in urbanized societies, the rarity of contact with diverse environmental microbiota negatively impacts immune function and ultimately increases the risk for allergies and other immune-mediated disorders. Surprisingly, the basic assumption that urbanization reduces exposure to environmental microbiota and its transfer indoors has rarely been examined. We investigated if the land use type around Finnish homes affects the diversity, richness, and abundance of bacterial communities indoors. Debris deposited on standardized doormats was collected in 30 rural and 26 urban households in and near the city of Lahti, Finland, in August 2015. Debris was weighed, bacterial community composition determined by high throughput sequencing of bacterial 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene on the Illumina MiSeq platform, and the percentage of four different land use types (i.e., built area, forest, transitional, and open area) within 200 m and 2000 m radiuses from each household was characterized. The quantity of doormat debris was inversely correlated with coverage of built area. The diversity of total bacterial, Proteobacterial, Actinobacterial, Bacteroidetes, and Firmicutes communities decreased as the percentage of built area increased. Their richness followed the same pattern except for Firmicutes for which no association was observed. The relative abundance of Proteobacteria and particularly Gammaproteobacteria increased, whereas that of Actinobacteria decreased with increasing built area. Neither Phylum Firmicutes nor Bacteroidetes varied with coverage of built area. Additionally, the relative abundance of potentially pathogenic bacterial families and genera increased as the percentage of built area increased. Interestingly, having domestic animals (including pets) only altered the association between the richness of Gammaproteobacteria and diversity of Firmicutes with the built area coverage suggesting that animal ownership minimally affects transfer of environmental microbiota indoors from the living environment. These results support the hypothesis that people living in densely built areas are less exposed to diverse environmental microbiota than people living in more sparsely built areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anirudra Parajuli
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
| | - Mira Grönroos
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
| | - Nathan Siter
- School of Artitechture, Tampere University of Technology, Tampere, Finland
| | - Riikka Puhakka
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
| | - Heli K. Vari
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
| | - Marja I. Roslund
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
| | - Ari Jumpponen
- Division of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, United States
| | - Noora Nurminen
- Department of Virology, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland
| | - Olli H. Laitinen
- Department of Virology, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland
| | - Heikki Hyöty
- Department of Virology, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland
- Fimlab Laboratories, Pirkanmaa Hospital District, Tampere, Finland
| | - Juho Rajaniemi
- School of Artitechture, Tampere University of Technology, Tampere, Finland
| | - Aki Sinkkonen
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
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Fu Z, Li Y, Lu Z, Chu J, Sun J, Zhang J, Zhang G, Xue F, Guo X, Xu A. Lung cancer mortality clusters in Shandong Province, China: how do they change over 40 years? Oncotarget 2017; 8:88770-88781. [PMID: 29179474 PMCID: PMC5687644 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.21144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2017] [Accepted: 08/06/2017] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Lung cancer has long been a major health problem in China. This study aimed to examine the temporal trend and spatial pattern of lung cancer mortality in Shandong Province from 1970 to 2013. Lung cancer mortality data were obtained from Shandong Death Registration System and three nationwide retrospective cause-of-death surveys. A Purely Spatial Scan Statistics method with Discrete Poisson models was used to detect possible high-risk spatial clusters. The results show that lung cancer mortality rate in Shandong Province increased markedly from 1970-1974 (7.22 per 100,000 person-years) to 2011-2013 (56.37/100, 000). This increase was associated with both demographic and non-demographic factors. Several significant spatial clusters with high lung cancer mortality were identified. The most likely cluster was located in the northern region of Shandong Province during both 1970-1974 and 2011-2013. It appears the spatial pattern remained largely consistent over the last 40 years despite the absolute increase in the mortality rates. These findings will help develop intervention strategies to reduce lung cancer mortality in this large Chinese population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhentao Fu
- Department for Chronic and Non-Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Jinan, China
| | - Yingmei Li
- The Second People's Hospital of Jinan, Jinan, China
| | - Zilong Lu
- Department for Chronic and Non-Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Jinan, China
| | - Jie Chu
- Department for Chronic and Non-Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Jinan, China
| | - Jiandong Sun
- School of Public Health and Social Work, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Jiyu Zhang
- Department for Chronic and Non-Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Jinan, China
| | - Gaohui Zhang
- Department for Chronic and Non-Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Jinan, China
| | - Fuzhong Xue
- School of Public Health, Shandong University, Jinan, China
| | - Xiaolei Guo
- Department for Chronic and Non-Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Jinan, China
| | - Aiqiang Xu
- Department for Chronic and Non-Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Jinan, China
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Gaffin JM, Petty CR, Hauptman M, Kang CM, Wolfson JM, Awad YA, Di Q, Lai PS, Sheehan WJ, Baxi S, Coull BA, Schwartz JD, Gold DR, Koutrakis P, Phipatanakul W. Modeling indoor particulate exposures in inner-city school classrooms. JOURNAL OF EXPOSURE SCIENCE & ENVIRONMENTAL EPIDEMIOLOGY 2017; 27:451-457. [PMID: 27599884 PMCID: PMC5340641 DOI: 10.1038/jes.2016.52] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2015] [Accepted: 04/09/2016] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Outdoor air pollution penetrates buildings and contributes to total indoor exposures. We investigated the relationship of indoor to outdoor particulate matter in inner-city school classrooms. The School Inner City Asthma Study investigates the effect of classroom-based environmental exposures on students with asthma in the northeast United States. Mixed effects linear models were used to determine the relationships between indoor PM2.5 (particulate matter) and black carbon (BC), and their corresponding outdoor concentrations, and to develop a model for predicting exposures to these pollutants. The indoor-outdoor sulfur ratio was used as an infiltration factor of outdoor fine particles. Weeklong concentrations of PM2.5 and BC in 199 samples from 136 classrooms (30 school buildings) were compared with those measured at a central monitoring site averaged over the same timeframe. Mixed effects regression models found significant random intercept and slope effects, which indicate that: (1) there are important PM2.5 sources in classrooms; (2) the penetration of outdoor PM2.5 particles varies by school and (3) the site-specific outside PM2.5 levels (inferred by the models) differ from those observed at the central monitor site. Similar results were found for BC except for lack of indoor sources. The fitted predictions from the sulfur-adjusted models were moderately predictive of observed indoor pollutant levels (out of sample correlations: PM2.5: r2=0.68, BC; r2=0.61). Our results suggest that PM2.5 has important classroom sources, which vary by school. Furthermore, using these mixed effects models, classroom exposures can be accurately predicted for dates when central site measures are available but indoor measures are not available.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Marissa Hauptman
- Boston Children's Hospital
- Harvard Medical school
- Region 1 New England Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit
| | | | | | | | - Qian Di
- T.H. Chan Harvard School of Public Health
| | - Peggy S. Lai
- Harvard Medical school
- T.H. Chan Harvard School of Public Health
- Massachusetts General Hospital
| | | | - Sachin Baxi
- Boston Children's Hospital
- Harvard Medical school
| | | | | | - Diane R. Gold
- Harvard Medical school
- T.H. Chan Harvard School of Public Health
- Channing Laboratory, Brigham and Women's Hospital
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Oliveira M, Slezakova K, Delerue-Matos C, Pereira MDC, Morais S. Indoor air quality in preschools (3- to 5-year-old children) in the Northeast of Portugal during spring-summer season: pollutants and comfort parameters. JOURNAL OF TOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH. PART A 2017; 80:740-755. [PMID: 28569620 DOI: 10.1080/15287394.2017.1286932] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Indoor air quality at schools (elementary, primary) has been the subject of many studies; however, there are still relative few data regarding preschool (3- to 5-year-old children) environments. This investigation determined the concentrations of particulate matter (PM)2.5, total volatile organic compounds (TVOC), formaldehyde, carbon monoxide (CO), and ozone (O3) as well as the levels of carbon dioxide (CO2), temperature, and relative humidity (RH) in the indoor and outdoor air of two preschools situated in different geographical regions of Portugal. The indoor concentrations of TVOC, CO, O3, and CO2 were predominantly higher at the end of school day compared to early morning periods. The TVOC and CO2 concentrations were higher indoors than outdoors suggesting predominantly an indoor origin. Outdoor air infiltrations were the major contributing source of CO and O3 to indoor air in both preschools. The concentrations of all pollutants were within the limits defined by national regulations and international organizations, except for TVOC that exceeded 8-12-fold higher than the recommendation of 0.2 mg/m3 proposed by European Commission. The levels of CO2 were below the protective guideline of 2250 mg/m3 (Portuguese legislation); however, the observed ranges exceeded the Portuguese margin of tolerance (2925 mg/m3) at the end of school days, indicating the impact of occupancy rates particularly at one of the preschools. Regarding comfort parameters, temperature exerted a significant influence on O3 concentrations, while RH values were significantly correlated with TVOC levels in indoor air of preschools, particularly during the late afternoon periods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marta Oliveira
- a REQUIMTE-LAQV, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto, Instituto Politécnico do Porto , Porto , Portugal
| | - Klara Slezakova
- a REQUIMTE-LAQV, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto, Instituto Politécnico do Porto , Porto , Portugal
- b LEPABE, Departamento de Engenharia Química , Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto , Porto , Portugal
| | - Cristina Delerue-Matos
- a REQUIMTE-LAQV, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto, Instituto Politécnico do Porto , Porto , Portugal
| | - Maria do Carmo Pereira
- b LEPABE, Departamento de Engenharia Química , Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto , Porto , Portugal
| | - Simone Morais
- a REQUIMTE-LAQV, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto, Instituto Politécnico do Porto , Porto , Portugal
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Park DW, Kim SH, Moon JY, Song JS, Choi J, Kwak HJ, Jeong MG, Ro YS, Kim TH, Sohn JW, Shin DH, Park SS, Yoon HJ. The effect of low-volatile organic compounds, water-based paint on aggravation of allergic disease in schoolchildren. INDOOR AIR 2017; 27:320-328. [PMID: 27007057 DOI: 10.1111/ina.12301] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2015] [Accepted: 03/19/2016] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Whether indoor painting aggravates preexisting allergic diseases remains unclear. We aimed to evaluate the impact of new classroom painting on aggravation of asthma, allergic rhinitis (AR), and atopic dermatitis (AD) in children. Studied school was previously painted with conventional water-based paint 20 years ago and had natural ventilation system. We identified a total of 172 children aged 10-12 years with allergic diseases in 17 classrooms, which were allocated to newly painted rooms with low-volatile organic compounds (VOC), water-based paint, or existing rooms. After painting, there was no intervention or internal airflow to influence indoor air environment in both classrooms. We prospectively assessed the symptom severity and serious events of allergic diseases between both classrooms at baseline and after one and eight weeks after painting. At one and eight weeks, there were no significant changes in the Childhood Asthma Control Test scores, the fractional nitric oxide levels, lung function in asthmatic children in either classroom. There were also no significant changes in the severity score of AR or AD, or serious events in all allergic diseases. These findings suggest classroom painting with this new paint at the levels encountered in this study might not be a major aggravating factor for school-aged children with allergic diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- D W Park
- Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - S-H Kim
- Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - J-Y Moon
- Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - J S Song
- Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - J Choi
- Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - H J Kwak
- Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - M G Jeong
- Department of Dermatology, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - Y S Ro
- Department of Dermatology, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - T H Kim
- Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - J W Sohn
- Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - D H Shin
- Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - S S Park
- Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - H J Yoon
- Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
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Ooi SS, Mak JW, Chen DKF, Ambu S. The correlation of Acanthamoeba from the ventilation system with other environmental parameters in commercial buildings as possible indicator for indoor air quality. INDUSTRIAL HEALTH 2017; 55:35-45. [PMID: 27476379 PMCID: PMC5285312 DOI: 10.2486/indhealth.2015-0218] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
The free-living protozoan Acanthamoeba is an opportunistic pathogen that is ubiquitous in our environment. However, its role in affecting indoor air quality and ill-health of indoor occupants is relatively unknown. The present study investigated the presence of Acanthamoeba from the ventilation system and its correlation with other indoor air quality parameters, used in the industry code of practice and its potential as an indicator for indoor air quality. Indoor air quality assessments were carried out in nine commercial buildings with approval from the building management, and the parameters assessed were as recommended by the Department of Occupational Safety and Health. The presence of Acanthamoeba was determined through dust swabs from the ventilation system and indoor furniture. Logistic regression was performed to study the correlation between assessed parameters and occupants’ complaints. A total of 107 sampling points were assessed and 40.2% of the supplying air diffuser and blowing fan and 15% of the furniture were positive for cysts. There was a significant correlation between Acanthamoeba detected from the ventilation system with ambient total fungus count (r=0.327; p=0.01) and respirable particulates (r=0.276; p=0.01). Occupants’ sick building syndrome experience also correlated with the presence of Acanthamoeba in the ventilation system (r=0.361; p=0.01) and those detected on the furniture (r=0.290; p=0.01). Logistic regression showed that there was a five-fold probability of sick building syndrome among occupants when Acanthamoeba was detected in the ventilation system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Soo Shen Ooi
- School of Postgraduate Studies, Institute for Research, Development and Innovation (IRDI), International Medical University, Malaysia
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Nkosi V, Wichmann J, Voyi K. Indoor and outdoor PM 10 levels at schools located near mine dumps in Gauteng and North West Provinces, South Africa. BMC Public Health 2017; 17:42. [PMID: 28061882 PMCID: PMC5219730 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-016-3950-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2016] [Accepted: 12/15/2016] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Few studies in South Africa have investigated the exposure of asthmatic learners to indoor and outdoor air pollution at schools. This study compared outdoor PM10 and SO2 exposure levels in exposed (1-2 km from gold mine dumps) and unexposed schools (5 km or more from gold mine dumps). It also examined exposure of asthmatic children to indoor respirable dust at exposed and unexposed schools. METHODS The study was conducted between 1 and 31 October 2012 in five schools from exposed and five from unexposed communities. Outdoor PM10 and SO2 levels were measured for 8-h at each school. Ten asthmatic learners were randomly selected from each school for 8-h personal respirable dust sampling during school hours. RESULTS The level of outdoor PM10 for exposed was 16.42 vs. 11.47 mg.m-3 for the unexposed communities (p < 0.001). The outdoor SO2 for exposed was 0.02 ppb vs. 0.01 ppb for unexposed communities (p < 0.001). Indoor respirable dust in the classroom differed significantly between exposed (0.17 mg.m-3) vs. unexposed (0.01 mg.m-3) children with asthma at each school (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION The significant differences between exposed and unexposed schools could reveal a serious potential health hazard for school children, although they were within the South African Air Quality Standards' set by the Department of Environmental Affairs. The indoor respirable dust levels in exposed schools could have an impact on children with asthma, as they were significantly higher than the unexposed schools, although there are no published standards for environmental exposure for children with asthma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vusumuzi Nkosi
- School of Health Systems and Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, P.O. Box 2034, Pretoria, 0001, South Africa.
- Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa.
| | - Janine Wichmann
- School of Health Systems and Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, P.O. Box 2034, Pretoria, 0001, South Africa
| | - Kuku Voyi
- School of Health Systems and Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, P.O. Box 2034, Pretoria, 0001, South Africa
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