Kielb C, Lin S, Muscatiello N, Hord W, Rogers-Harrington J, Healy J
NYS Department of Health, Center for Environmental Health, Albany, NY, USA.
University at Albany School of Public Health, Rensselaer, NY, USA.
Indoor Air. 2015 Aug;25(4):371-80. doi: 10.1111/ina.12154. Epub 2014 Oct 1.
Most previous research on indoor environments and health has studied school children or occupants in non-school settings. This investigation assessed building-related health symptoms and classroom characteristics via telephone survey of New York State school teachers. Participants were asked about 14 building-related symptoms and 23 classroom characteristics potentially related to poor indoor air quality (IAQ). Poisson regression analysis was used to assess the relationship between these symptoms and each classroom characteristic, controlling for potential confounders. About 500 teachers completed the survey. The most frequently reported classroom characteristics included open shelving (70.7%), food eaten in class (65.5%), dust (59.1%), and carpeting (46.9%). The most commonly reported symptoms included sinus problems (16.8%), headache (15.0%), allergies/congestion (14.8%), and throat irritation (14.6%). Experiencing one or more symptoms was associated most strongly with reported dust (relative risk (RR) = 3.67; 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.62-5.13), dust reservoirs (RR = 2.13; 95% CI: 1.72-2.65), paint odors (RR = 1.73; 95% CI: 1.40-2.13), mold (RR = 1.71; 95% CI: 1.39-2.11), and moldy odors (RR = 1.65 95% CI: 1.30-2.10). Stronger associations were found with increasing numbers of reported IAQ-related classroom characteristics. Similar results were found with having any building-related allergic/respiratory symptom. This research adds to the body of evidence underscoring the importance to occupant health of school IAQ.
Teachers play an important role in educating children, and teacher well-being is important to this role. Health symptoms among New York teachers while at work are common and appear to be associated with numerous characteristics related to poor classroom IAQ. Improving school Indoor Air Quality may reduce sickness and absenteeism and improve teacher performance.
以往大多数关于室内环境与健康的研究都聚焦于学童或非学校环境中的居住者。本调查通过对纽约州学校教师进行电话调查，评估了与建筑相关的健康症状和教室特征。参与者被问及14种与建筑相关的症状以及23种可能与室内空气质量（IAQ）差相关的教室特征。采用泊松回归分析来评估这些症状与每种教室特征之间的关系，并对潜在的混杂因素进行控制。约500名教师完成了调查。报告最多的教室特征包括开放式书架（70.7%）、在教室吃东西（65.5%）、灰尘（59.1%）和地毯（46.9%）。最常报告的症状包括鼻窦问题（16.8%）、头痛（15.0%）、过敏/鼻塞（14.8%）和喉咙刺激（14.6%）。出现一种或多种症状与报告的灰尘（相对风险（RR）=3.67；95%置信区间（CI）：2.62 - 5.13）、灰尘积聚处（RR = 2.13；95% CI：1.72 - 2.65）、油漆气味（RR = 1.73；95% CI：1.40 - 2.13）、霉菌（RR = 1.71；95% CI：1.39 - 2.11）和霉味（RR = 1.65；95% CI：1.30 - 2.10）关联最为紧密。报告的与IAQ相关的教室特征数量越多，关联越强。对于任何与建筑相关的过敏/呼吸道症状也发现了类似结果。这项研究进一步证明了学校IAQ对居住者健康的重要性。
教师在教育孩子方面起着重要作用，而教师的健康对这一角色至关重要。纽约教师在工作时出现健康症状很常见，且似乎与许多与教室IAQ差相关的特征有关。改善学校室内空气质量可能会减少疾病和缺勤情况，并提高教师的工作表现。
