Shalat Stuart L, Lioy Paul J, Schmeelck Kathleen, Mainelis Gediminas
Department of Environmental and Occupational Medicine, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, and Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA.
J Air Waste Manag Assoc. 2007 Aug;57(8):934-9. doi: 10.3155/1047-3289.57.8.934.
There is growing scientific evidence linking early childhood exposure to environmental agents with asthma and other illnesses that may not appear until later in life. Unfortunately the direct measurement of personal exposures of children in the first year of life is not possible by existing methodologies. This study developed and evaluated a new methodology to better assess exposure of children to inhalable particles in the first year of life while involved in floor play in the home. We constructed the Pre-Toddler Inhalable Particulate Environmental Robotic (PIPER) sampler. Two series of measurements of inhalable particles were carried out. One collected filter samples of airborne inhalable particles and a second used a real-time total particle mass concentration monitor. Samples were collected for seven residential locations. Duplicate samples were collected with PIPER 20 cm above the floor and from an identical stationary monitor positioned at a height of 110 cm. The mean observed airborne inhalable particle concentrations measured by PIPER was 98.6 microg/ m3, whereas simultaneously collected stationary samples mean concentration was 49.8 microg/m3. The average observed ratio of PIPER samples to stationary samples was 2.4. A paired t test comparison of the two sampling methods indicated a statistically significant higher level of inhalable particle concentration measured by PIPER in comparison with the fixed sampler (P < 0.0001). Peak concentrations as measured by a real-time monitor were in excess of 3600 microg/m3. The results suggest that children playing on the floor are exposed to a higher concentration of total inhalable particles than previous methodologies estimate.
越来越多的科学证据表明，儿童早期接触环境因素与哮喘及其他可能在日后才出现的疾病有关。不幸的是，现有的方法无法直接测量一岁儿童的个人暴露情况。本研究开发并评估了一种新方法，以更好地评估一岁儿童在家中进行地板游戏时接触可吸入颗粒物的情况。我们构建了幼儿可吸入颗粒物环境机器人（PIPER）采样器。进行了两组可吸入颗粒物测量。一组收集空气中可吸入颗粒物的过滤样本，另一组使用实时总颗粒物质量浓度监测仪。在七个居住地点采集了样本。在距离地面20厘米处用PIPER采集重复样本，并从位于110厘米高度的相同固定监测仪处采集样本。PIPER测量的空气中可吸入颗粒物平均浓度为98.6微克/立方米，而同时采集的固定样本平均浓度为49.8微克/立方米。PIPER样本与固定样本的平均观测比值为2.4。两种采样方法的配对t检验比较表明，与固定采样器相比，PIPER测量的可吸入颗粒物浓度在统计学上显著更高（P < 0.0001）。实时监测仪测量的峰值浓度超过3600微克/立方米。结果表明，在地板上玩耍的儿童接触的可吸入颗粒物总浓度比以前的方法估计的要高。
