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Showing posts with label Respiratory Disorders. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Respiratory Disorders. Show all posts

Friday, September 30, 2011

Strong Link Between Mold & Asthma in Children.

Asthma before-afterImage via WikipediaThe current issue of Indoor Environment Connection's front page article is "Strong Link Between Mold and Asthma in Children" written by Tom Scarlett.  The article discusses a new study that appeared in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology, this study indicates that children living in homes with high levels of mold had more than twice the risk of developing asthma than did children in mold-free homes.  The article does a really good job of putting together results from several studies to point out the risk of children developing asthma from mold exposures.  Discussed in the article is the metric, "Environmental Relative Moldiness Index" (ERMI) that was used in the study to determine the exposure level of the occupants.  It will be interesting how we can use ERMI to help us quantitatively describe the mold burden in future studies and testing.
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Wednesday, July 06, 2011

EPA Issues Press Release On Reducing Asthma Attacks During Summer

US Air Quality Index Map-1/23/2009Image via WikipediaThe Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) warns that hot weather can cause ozone levels to rise, making the air unhealthy to breathe, especially for people with asthma or other respiratory ailments.  Throughout the hot summer months, it’s important to pay close attention to the air quality. Like the weather, air quality can change from day to day or even hour to hour, and can have a serious affect on people’s health.
The Air Quality Index uses a color-coded system to display whether the five major air pollutants exceed air quality standards for the day.  When the Air Quality Index reports unhealthy levels, people, particularly asthmatics and others with respiratory ailments, should limit strenuous outdoor activities.

During the summer when ozone levels rise, the number of people with asthma related symptoms admitted to hospitals and emergency rooms increases.   Asthma rates – especially among children – have increased dramatically.  Asthma affects 25 million people in the United States, including seven million children.  That’s 8 percent of the population.  One out of every 10 school-aged children is affected. In addition to talking with health care providers, these steps can help prevent an asthma episode:

For information on EPA’s regional asthma program and other asthma triggers please see: http://www.epa.gov/asthma/awm
To hear an audio podcast about asthma: http://www.epa.gov/region2/mediacenter/podcast.html
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Thursday, February 17, 2011

Asthma Control Study Indicates a Home Visit Strategy is Successful.

The house dust mite, its feces and chitin are ...Image via WikipediaIn a study published in Pediatric Allergy, Immunology, and Pulmonology (Volume 23, Number 2, 2010) called “Home Is Where the Triggers Are: Increasing Asthma Control by Improving the Home Environment” by James Krieger, MD, MPH discusses effectiveness of a home visit strategy. A home visit strategy should include an environmental component that addresses multiple triggers. Visitors assess home environmental conditions, tailor education on how to eliminate triggers to the client’s sensitization status and exposures found in the home, provide trigger reduction resources (eg, vacuums, cleaning supplies, bedding encasements and referral to smoking cessation), help with cockroach and rodent integrated pest management, make minor repairs and provide social support. An important part of the strategy is that visitors build trusting relationships with clients, thus enhancing their effectiveness in motivating behavior changes. These home visits reduce exposure to triggers, decrease symptoms and urgent health-care use, and increase quality of life. Home visit program cost per client ranges from $200 to $1500 based on the type of home visitor and the intensity of the intervention. However, a cost-effectiveness analysis concluded that these home visits have a return on investment of 5.3 – 14.0 and a cost of $12 - $57 per symptom-free day gained. It is important to note that the annual cost of inhaled fluticasone (220ug) is approximately $1567. The study discusses the Seattle-King County Healthy Homes program as an example of a successful program.


The study also talks about the strong evidence that links exposure to allergens commonly found in homes such as those derived from dust mites, cockroaches, rodents, molds, and pet dander, to sensitization and subsequent asthma incidence and morbidity. Exposure to indoor allergens is widespread, with >92% of homes containing sufficient concentrations of at least one allergen in dust to cause symptoms in sensitized individuals and 46% with exposure to three or more. In addition to allergens, other indoor asthma triggers include tobacco smoke, nitrogen oxides from combustion devices, irritants from volatile organic compounds, and fungi.

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That Time of Year! Conferences, Posting Requirements, and OSHA Violations Increased!

It's that time of year again. We're between conferences.  February 15-16, 2024 was the Professional Abatement Contractors of New Yor...