Pena Mirle, Neu Dylan T, Feng H Amy, Hammond Duane R, Mead Kenneth R, Banerjee Rupak K
Division of Field Studies and Engineering, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Cincinnati, OH.
Department of Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH.
J Occup Environ Hyg. 2025 Apr 17:1-14. doi: 10.1080/15459624.2025.2485074.
Emergency medical service (EMS) providers face significant exposure to infectious aerosols during outbreaks like the COVID-19 pandemic. Most ambulances lack ventilation controls to reduce EMS worker exposure to these aerosols. Ambulances are smaller than hospital rooms and handle numerous patients daily, increasing contact with potentially infectious individuals. Ventilation controls such as portable high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filtration can mitigate this risk. Few studies have assessed portable HEPA filters in ambulances. This study evaluated two HEPA filter models in an unoccupied, stationary research ambulance at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in Cincinnati. A tracer aerosol simulated patient aerosol generation, and optical particle counters (OPCs) measured aerosols. The HEPA units were tested individually, placed in the same location, and operated for 50 min. Results showed significant reductions in aerosol concentrations during the generation phase, with performance varying during the decay period. Overall, HEPA units reduced particle concentrations by around 50% during the generation phase and continued to be effective through the decay period. This demonstrates the potential of portable HEPA filters as an affordable and effective option for air cleaning in ambulance patient modules.
在新冠疫情等疫情爆发期间,紧急医疗服务(EMS)提供者面临着接触传染性气溶胶的重大风险。大多数救护车缺乏通风控制措施,无法减少急救人员接触这些气溶胶的机会。救护车比医院病房小,且每天要接待众多患者,增加了与潜在感染个体的接触。诸如便携式高效空气过滤器(HEPA)等通风控制措施可以降低这种风险。很少有研究评估过救护车中的便携式HEPA过滤器。本研究在美国国家职业安全与健康研究所(NIOSH)位于辛辛那提的一辆无人占用的固定研究救护车上,对两种HEPA过滤器型号进行了评估。一种示踪气溶胶模拟患者气溶胶的产生,光学粒子计数器(OPC)测量气溶胶。这些HEPA装置分别进行测试,放置在同一位置,并运行50分钟。结果显示,在产生阶段气溶胶浓度显著降低,在衰减期性能有所不同。总体而言,HEPA装置在产生阶段将颗粒浓度降低约50%,并在衰减期持续有效。这表明便携式HEPA过滤器作为一种经济有效的救护车患者舱空气净化选择具有潜力。
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