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Indoor Environment (indoor + environment)
Selected AbstractsVentilation filters and indoor air quality: a review of research from the International Centre for Indoor Environment and EnergyINDOOR AIR, Issue 2004G. Clausen First page of article [source] Sign of Eye Irritation in Female Hospital Workers and the Indoor EnvironmentINDOOR AIR, Issue 4 2001HANS THORE SMEDBOLD First page of article [source] Chlorinated Ethyl and Isopropyl Phosphoric Acid Triesters in the Indoor Environment , An Inter-Laboratory Exposure StudyINDOOR AIR, Issue 3 2001G. INGEROWSKI [source] Measured concentrations of combustion gases from the use of unvented gas fireplacesINDOOR AIR, Issue 5 2010P. W. Francisco Abstract, Measurements of combustion product concentrations were taken in 30 homes where unvented gas fireplaces were used. Measurements of CO, CO2, NOx, NO2, O2 (depletion), and water vapor were taken at 1-min interval. The analyzers were calibrated with certified calibration gases for each placement and were in operation for 3,4 days at each home. Measured concentrations were compared to published health-based standards and guidelines. The two combustion gases that exceeded published values were NO2 and CO. For NO2, the Health Canada guideline of 250 ppb (1-h average) was exceeded in about 43% of the sample and the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 110 ppb (1-h average) was exceeded in 80% of the sample. Carbon monoxide levels exceeded the U.S. EPA 8-h average standard of 9 ppm in 20% of the sample. Moisture problems were not evident in the test homes. An analysis of the distribution of CO showed that the CO is dispersed throughout the home almost immediately upon operation of the fireplace and that the concentrations throughout the home away from the immediate vicinity of the fireplace are 70,80% of the level near the fireplace. Decay analysis of the combustion gases showed that NO was similarly stable to CO and CO2 in the indoor environment but that both NO2 and water vapor were removed from the air at much greater rates. Practical Implications Previous studies on unvented gas fireplaces have made assumptions of how they are operated by users. This article presents the results of field monitoring of 30 unvented gas fireplaces under normal operation, regardless of whether users follow industry recommendations regarding installation, usage patterns, and maintenance. The monitoring found that health-based standards and guidelines were exceeded for CO in 20% of homes and for NO2 in most homes. There were no identified moisture problems in these homes. Nearly, half of the fireplaces were used at least once for longer than 2 h, counter to manufacturers' intended usage as supplemental heating. This demonstrates that given actual usage patterns and compared to current health-based thresholds, these appliances can produce indoor air concentrations considered to be unhealthy to at least sensitive or at-risk individuals. [source] Some questions on dispersion of human exhaled droplets in ventilation room: answers from numerical investigationINDOOR AIR, Issue 2 2010C. Chen Abstract, This study employs a numerical model to investigate the dispersion characteristics of human exhaled droplets in ventilation rooms. The numerical model is validated by two different experiments prior to the application for the studied cases. Some typical questions on studying dispersion of human exhaled droplets indoors are reviewed and numerical study using the normalized evaporation time and normalized gravitational sedimentation time was performed to obtain the answers. It was found that modeling the transient process from a droplet to a droplet nucleus due to evaporation can be neglected when the normalized evaporation time is <0.051. When the normalized gravitational sedimentation time is <0.005, the influence of ventilation rate could be neglected. However, the influence of ventilation pattern and initial exhaled velocity on the exhaled droplets dispersion is dominant as the airflow decides the droplets dispersion significantly. Besides, the influence of temperature and relative humidity on the dispersion of droplets can be neglected for the droplet with initial diameter <200 ,m; while droplet nuclei size plays an important role only for the droplets with initial diameter within the range of 10 ,m,100 ,m. Practical Implications Dispersion of human exhaled droplets indoor is a key issue when evaluating human exposure to infectious droplets. Results from detailed numerical studies in this study reveal how the evaporation of droplets, ventilation rate, airflow pattern, initial exhaled velocity, and particle component decide the droplet dispersion indoor. The detailed analysis of these main influencing factors on droplet dispersion in ventilation rooms may help to guide (1) the selection of numerical approach, e.g., if the transient process from a droplet to a droplet nucleus due to evaporation should be incorporated to study droplet dispersion, and (2) the selection of ventilation system to minimize the spread of pathogen-laden droplets in an indoor environment. [source] Residential air exchange rates in three major US metropolitan areas: results from the Relationship Among Indoor, Outdoor, and Personal Air Study 1999,2001INDOOR AIR, Issue 1 2010N. Yamamoto Abstract, We report approximately 500 indoor,outdoor air exchange rate (AER) calculations based on measurements conducted in residences in three US metropolitan areas in 1999,2001: Elizabeth, New Jersey; Houston, Texas; and Los Angeles County, California. Overall, a median AER across these urban areas and seasons was 0.71 air changes per hour (ACH, or per hour; n = 509) while median AERs measured in California (n = 182), New Jersey (n = 163), and Texas (n = 164) were 0.87, 0.88, and 0.47 ACH, respectively. In Texas, the measured AERs were lower in the summer cooling season (median = 0.37 ACH) than in the winter heating season (median = 0.63 ACH), likely because of the reported use of room air conditioners as Houston is typically hot and humid during the summer. The measured AERs in California were higher in summer (median = 1.13 ACH) than in winter (median = 0.61 ACH). Because the summer cooling season in Los Angeles County is less humid than in New Jersey or Texas, natural ventilation through open windows and screened doors likely increased measured AER in California study homes. In New Jersey, AER were similar across heating and cooling seasons, although the median AER was relatively lower during the spring. Practical Implications Adequate ventilation or air exchange rate (AER) for an indoor environment is important for human health and comfort, and relevant to building design and energy conservation and efficiency considerations. However, residential AER data, especially measured by more accurate non-toxic tracer gas methodologies, are at present quite limited worldwide, and are insufficient to represent the variations across regions and seasons within and between homes, including apartments and condominiums in more densely populated urban areas. The present paper presents quantitative and qualitative data to characterize residential AERs in three US urban areas with different climate attributes. [source] Surface dust contamination and perceived indoor environment in office buildingsINDOOR AIR, Issue 5 2004E. Pesonen-Leinonen First page of article [source] Rate constants for the gas-phase reactions of nitrate radicals with geraniol, citronellol, and dihydromyrcenol,INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL KINETICS, Issue 11 2010Joel C. Harrison Terpenes and terpene alcohols are prevalent compounds found in a wide variety of consumer products including soaps, flavorings, perfumes, and air fresheners used in the indoor environment. Knowing the reaction rate of these chemicals with the nitrate radical is an important factor in determining their fate indoors. In this study, the bimolecular rate constants of k (16.6 ± 4.2) × 10,12, k (12.1 ± 3) × 10,12, and k (2.3 ± 0.6) × 10,14 cm3 molecule,1 s,1 were measured using the relative rate technique for the reaction of the nitrate radical (NO3,) with 2,6-dimethyl-2,6-octadien-8-ol (geraniol), 3,7-dimethyl-6-octen-1-ol (citronellol), and 2,6-dimethyl-7-octen-2-ol (dihydromyrcenol) at (297 ± 3) K and 1 atmosphere total pressure. Using the geraniol, citronellol, or dihydromyrcenol + NO3, rate constants reported here, pseudo-first-order rate lifetimes (k,) of 1.5, 1.1, and 0.002 h,1 were determined, respectively. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 42: 669,675, 2010 [source] Treatment principles of atopic dermatitisJOURNAL OF THE EUROPEAN ACADEMY OF DERMATOLOGY & VENEREOLOGY, Issue 1 2002K. Thestrup-Pedersen Abstract Atopic dermatitis (AD) is today the most common, chronic inflammatory skin disease among children in developed countries. Its cumulative prevalence varies from 20% in northern Europe and the USA to approximately 5% in Mediterranean countries. As a chronic disease it puts a special demand on treatment. There is no curative therapy, but competent guidance on treatment principles can control the disease in most, if not all children. This article summarizes the evidence-based knowledge that relates to the treatment of atopic eczema. It also gives advice and opinions on prophylactic measures as these are the focus of interest from most parents. Learning objective This article should enable you to give advice and guidance to parents of children with AD, including what is necessary for diagnosis, what is of value and importance considering allergies and allergological investigations, allergen exposure, prophylactic measures, diets and indoor environment. Finally, you should be able to explain the diversity of treatment principles for parents. [source] 60 GHz fiber-radio communication system for indoor ATM networkMICROWAVE AND OPTICAL TECHNOLOGY LETTERS, Issue 5 2001S. Dupont Abstract This paper presents a 60 GHz radio over fiber communication system for high-data-rate ATM indoor transmission. The radio interface is fully MMIC integrated (OMMIC ED 0.2 AH foundry). The system has been successfully tested in an indoor environment for a data rate up to 100 Mbits/s. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 30: 307,310, 2001. [source] Occupational therapy adaptation of the home environment in Sweden for people with asthmaOCCUPATIONAL THERAPY INTERNATIONAL, Issue 4 2002Doctoral Candidate, Margot Frisk Occupational Therapist Abstract The purpose of this study was to evaluate changes of lung function, respiratory symptoms and indoor air quality after reducing allergens and indoor pollutants in the home environment of people with asthma (n = 21). A quasi-experimental pre-/post-test design with one group of participants was implemented. The interventions included removal of wall-to-wall carpets (n = 14) or improvement of indoor air exchange (n = 7). Participants' lung function, symptoms, medication and type-1 allergy were recorded before and after the intervention. The indoor environment was monitored at house calls by an occupational therapist using conventional physical, biological and chemical methods. There was an improvement of lung function evidenced by an increased mean Forced Expiratory Volume (FEV1 %) and a reduction of airway obstruction (reversibility, % of baseline value), which indicate an improved asthmatic condition. Lung function assessed by vital capacity, bronchial hyper-responsiveness, mean of Peak Expiratory Flow, symptom score and medicine consumption did not change significantly. There was a tendency that the amount of airborne dust (p=0.06) was reduced in the indoor environment. Relative humidity, carbon dioxide, formaldehyde and house dust mite levels had decreased after the intervention, but not significantly. Asthma symptoms related to the home environment are probably caused by several factors. When people with asthma suffer from increased symptoms in the home, house calls should be performed routinely. Dust samples from beds and carpets for analysis of allergens give information about exposure, and environmental assessments should be performed before interventions. Occupational therapists can make a valuable contribution in evaluating the home environment and suggesting ergonomic adaptations for individuals with asthma. Copyright © 2002 Whurr Publishers Ltd. [source] Prevalence of building-related symptoms as an indicator of health and productivityAMERICAN JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL MEDICINE, Issue 10 2006Raimo Niemelä PhD Abstract Background The prevalence of building-related symptoms (BRS) is commonly used to characterize the indoor air quality in office buildings. To analyze the costs of building renovation and the improvement of the indoor environment, it is useful to quantitatively relate the prevalence or intensity of BRS to productivity. The intent of this study is to summarize the links between the BRS and productivity, and demonstrate this linkage in two case buildings. Material and Methods A literature was surveyed for studies that measured simultaneously the prevalence or intensity of BRS and subjectively reported or objectively measured productivity. Case studies in two office environments were performed. An association between the prevalence of BRS and productivity of workers in a call center and in an insurance office were investigated. In the first case study, the productivity was expressed using the direct productivity metrics, namely the number of telephone contacts during active working hours while in the second case, the productivity was assessed by using the data concerning sick leave rates. Results Employees who report more BRS also have more often absences which relate to indoor environment quality (IEQ). Their productivity is lower than those who have better IEQ in their offices. Despite uncertainties related to the data concerning recorded sick leave and self-reported productivity, the number of studies showing an association between BRS and productivity or sick leave suggests that such a relationship exists. The present case studies also demonstrated an association between the BRS and the direct productivity. Based on the data from the call center, a reduction of 10%-units in the prevalence of general symptoms (such as fatigue, headache, nausea, etc.) corresponded with a gain of 1.5% in performance. Based on the findings in the insurance company, a reduction of 10%-units in the prevalence of irritation symptoms corresponded with a decrease of 0.7% in the short-term absenteeism. Conclusions A review of 23 studies suggests that a linkage exists between typical BRS and productivity indicators such as task or work performance or absence from work. Quantitative associations between BRS and productivity were demonstrated in two office environments. Quantitative associations between BRS and economic metrics enable cost-benefits analysis. Am. J. Ind. Med. 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Untersuchungen zum Raumklima und zur Fensterlüftung in SchulenBAUPHYSIK, Issue 2 2009Gruppenleiterin Raumklimaqualität Bauphysik Allgemein; Energieeinsparung Abstract Es gibt mehr als 40.000 Schulgebäude in Deutschland, von denen die meisten noch auf eine Sanierung warten. Sanierungen sollen nicht nur dazu dienen, den energetischen Standard der Gebäude zu verbessern, sondern sollten in erster Linie dazu genutzt werden, die raumklimatischen Bedingungen in den Klassenräumen für Schüler und Lehrer zu verbessern. Da die meisten deutschen Schulgebäude nicht mit Raumlufttechnischen Anlagen ausgestattet sind, werden die Räume durch freie Fensterlüftung, betätigt durch die Lehrer und Schüler, belüftet. Daher ist das Fensteröffnungsverhalten der Nutzer von Interesse. Der Einfluss des Fensteröffnungsverhaltens der Nutzer auf die raumklimatischen Bedingungen in den Klassenräumen wurde in zwei Schulen untersucht. Innentemperatur, Kohlendioxidkonzentration sowie die außenklimatischen Bedingungen wurden gemessen. In einer Schule wurde die Fensteröffnungszeit erfasst. Neben hohen Kohlendioxidkonzentrationen besonders während der Heizperiode, sind einige Klassenräume im Winter zu kalt und zu warm im Sommer. Einige Klassenräume haben keinen Sonnenschutz, oder der Sonnenschutz ist unzureichend oder er behindert die Belüftung des dahinterliegenden Raumes. Die Fenster werden zu einem gewissen Grad während des Unterrichts und in den Pausen genutzt. Jedoch werden die Fenster nach dem Unterricht geschlossen und bleiben geschlossen bis zum nächsten Morgen. Es wird keine Nachtlüftung oder Lüftung in den frühen Morgenstunden praktiziert. Signifikante schwache bis moderate Korrelationen zwischen der Fensteröffnungszeit und der Innentemperatur wurden gefunden. Die Korrelation zwischen der Fensteröffnungszeit und der Außentemperatur ist in den meisten Fällen nicht signifikant oder ist nur schwach ausgeprägt. Investigations on indoor environmental conditions and natural ventilation in school buildings. There are more than 40,000 school buildings in Germany. Most of them are awaiting retrofitting. Retrofitting is not only intended to improve the energetic standards, but first of all to improve indoor environmental conditions for pupils and teachers. As most of German schools are not equipped with mechanical ventilation systems, natural ventilation controlled by the occupants opening the windows is the main way to maintain healthy and comfortable conditions in the classrooms. For that purpose the influence of window opening behaviour of the occupants on the indoor environment was measured in two German schools. Temperature and carbon dioxide concentration of the indoor air as well as the outdoor climate conditions were measured. In one school the frequency of window opening was recorded. Besides high CO2 -concentrations especially during winter, some of the investigated classrooms are additionally to cold in winter or to hot in summer. Some classrooms do not have a shading device or the shading device is insufficient or it constricts the ventilation of the room. Windows are used as controls in some degree during lessons and during the breaks. But windows get closed after lessons and stay closed until next morning. There is no night or early morning ventilation in summer. A significant weak to moderate positive correlation between total open window ratio and indoor temperature has been found. Correlation between total open window ratio and outdoor temperature is not significant in most cases or show a weak correlation coefficient. [source] Today's allergic rhinitis patients are different: new factors that may play a roleALLERGY, Issue 9 2007R. Mösges Most of today's patients suffering from allergic rhinitis (AR) are sensitized to more than one trigger and suffer from persistent and moderate/severe symptoms, which severely impair their quality of life (QOL). The objective of this article was to review the data on the effect of increased air pollution, changes in indoor environment/lifestyle/affluence, exposure to new allergens and psychologically stressful lifestyles, as also to explore their potential in the development of this more ,aggressive' form of disease. Increased fossil fuel-generated air pollution may increase the risk of allergic sensitization, airway responsiveness to allergens, and allergenicity and the bioavailability of airborne allergens. Changes in indoor environment/lifestyle/affluence appear to have led to more time being spent indoors and resulted in perennial exposure to indoor allergens, changes in sensitization patterns, and polysensitization to a variety of novel cross-reacting exotic food and pet allergens. Although evidence suggests an association between psychological stress and increased risk for atopy and allergic disease, further studies are required to demonstrate this unequivocally. The more persistent and moderate/severe nature of the disease suggests a need for modification of current treatment strategies and advocacy of the use from the outset of agents, which are both efficacious and safe in managing severe and persistent AR symptoms and in improving the QOL of affected individuals. [source] Asthma and respiratory symptoms in hospital workers related to dampness and biological contaminantsINDOOR AIR, Issue 4 2009J. M. Cox-Ganser Abstract, The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health investigated respiratory symptoms and asthma in relation to damp indoor environments in employees of two hospitals. A cluster of six work-related asthma cases from one hospital department, whose symptoms arose during a time of significant water incursions, led us to conduct a survey of respiratory health in 1171/1834 employees working in the sentinel cases hospital and a nearby hospital without known indoor environmental concerns. We carried out observational assessment of dampness, air, chair, and floor dust sampling for biological contaminants, and investigation of exposure-response associations for about 500 participants. Many participants with post-hire onset asthma reported diagnosis dates in a period of water incursions and renovations. Post-hire asthma and work-related lower respiratory symptoms were positively associated with the dampness score. Work-related lower respiratory symptoms showed monotonically increasing odds ratios with ergosterol, a marker of fungal biomass. Other fungal and bacterial indices, particle counts, cat allergen and latex allergen were associated with respiratory symptoms. Our data imply new-onset of asthma in relation to water damage, and indicate that work-related respiratory symptoms in hospital workers may be associated with diverse biological contaminants. [source] Droplet fate in indoor environments, or can we prevent the spread of infection?INDOOR AIR, Issue 5 2006L. Morawska First page of article [source] Quality control of computational fluid dynamics in indoor environmentsINDOOR AIR, Issue 1 2003D. N. Sørensen First page of article [source] Indoor Air Quality in the 21st Century: Search for ExcellenceINDOOR AIR, Issue 2 2000P. OLE FANGER Abstract Field studies demonstrate that there are substantial numbers of dissatisfied people in many buildings, among them those suffering from sick building syndrome (SBS) symptoms, even though existing standards and guidelines are met. The reason is that the requirements specified in these standards are rather low, allowing a substantial group of people to become dissatisfied and to be adversely affected. A paradigm shift from rather mediocre to excellent indoor environments is foreseen in the 21st century. Based on existing information and on new research results, five principles are suggested as elements behind a new philosophy of excellence: 1) better indoor air quality increases productivity and decreases SBS symptoms; 2) unnecessary indoor pollution sources should be avoided; 3) the air should be served cool and dry to the occupants; 4) "personalized air", i.e. a small amount of clean air, should be served gently, close to the breathing zone of each individual; and 5) individual control of the thermal environment should be provided. These principles of excellence are compatible with energy efficiency and sustainability. [source] Learning invariants to illumination changes typical of indoor environments: Application to image color correctionINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF IMAGING SYSTEMS AND TECHNOLOGY, Issue 3 2007B. Bascle Abstract This paper presents a new approach for automatic image color correction, based on statistical learning. The method both parameterizes color independently of illumination and corrects color for changes of illumination. This is useful in many image processing applications, such as image segmentation or background subtraction. The motivation for using a learning approach is to deal with changes of lighting typical of indoor environments such as home and office. The method is based on learning color invariants using a modified multi-layer perceptron (MLP). The MLP is odd-layered. The middle layer includes two neurons which estimate two color invariants and one input neuron which takes in the luminance desired in output of the MLP. The advantage of the modified MLP over a classical MLP is better performance and the estimation of invariants to illumination. The trained modified MLP can be applied using look-up tables, yielding very fast processing. Results illustrate the approach and compare it with other color correction approaches from the literature. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Imaging Syst Technol, 17, 132,142, 2007 [source] Simple yet stable bearing-only navigationJOURNAL OF FIELD ROBOTICS (FORMERLY JOURNAL OF ROBOTIC SYSTEMS), Issue 5 2010Krajník This article describes a simple monocular navigation system for a mobile robot based on the map-and-replay technique. The presented method is robust and easy to implement and does not require sensor calibration or structured environment, and its computational complexity is independent of the environment size. The method can navigate a robot while sensing only one landmark at a time, making it more robust than other monocular approaches. The aforementioned properties of the method allow even low-cost robots to effectively act in large outdoor and indoor environments with natural landmarks only. The basic idea is to utilize a monocular vision to correct only the robot's heading, leaving distance measurements to the odometry. The heading correction itself can suppress the odometric error and prevent the overall position error from diverging. The influence of a map-based heading estimation and odometric errors on the overall position uncertainty is examined. A claim is stated that for closed polygonal trajectories, the position error of this type of navigation does not diverge. The claim is defended mathematically and experimentally. The method has been experimentally tested in a set of indoor and outdoor experiments, during which the average position errors have been lower than 0.3 m for paths more than 1 km long. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Diversity of streptomycetes in water-damaged building materials based on 16S rDNA sequencesLETTERS IN APPLIED MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 6 2002H. Rintala Aims:,The diversity of streptomycetes in two different types of water-damaged building materials was investigated. Methods and Results:,Direct PCR amplification of 16S rDNA from DNA isolated from building materials, cloning of the fragments and sequence analysis were used. In the phylogenetic analysis of the variable , region of the PCR amplification products, the sequences affiliated with five groups. Conclusions:,Several different sequences were found in both materials, suggesting the presence of several species. Also, previously unknown sequences were detected, although all the sequences clustered together with sequences of known species. Significance and Impact of the Study:,Streptomycetes are known as indicators for moisture and mould damage in buildings and potential health risk, but their diversity in indoor environments is still unknown. [source] Simulation of ultra-wideband indoor propagationMICROWAVE AND OPTICAL TECHNOLOGY LETTERS, Issue 2 2004A. M. Attiya Abstract A comprehensive simulation of ultra-wideband signal propagation in indoor environments is presented. The simulation is based on time-domain electromagnetic modeling of transmitting and receiving antennas and the analysis of wave propagation through indoor channels using the time-domain uniform theory of diffraction. The antennas are a pair of TEM horns which are modeled as arrays of vee dipoles. The analysis of these antennas is performed directly in the time domain, without the need for transforming the solutions from the frequency domain to the time domain. The frequency dependence of materials utilized in the structure on the indoor channel is accounted for in the channel simulation. The simulation results are compared with the corresponding measured results. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 42: 103,108, 2004; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.20221 [source] Influence of short-term exposure to airborne Der p 1 and volatile organic compounds on skin barrier function and dermal blood flow in patients with atopic eczema and healthy individualsCLINICAL & EXPERIMENTAL ALLERGY, Issue 3 2006J. Huss-Marp Summary Background Epidemiological studies indicate environmental pollutants to be involved in the increase in the prevalence of allergic diseases. In human exposure studies, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have been shown to cause exacerbations of allergic asthma whereas, no data concerning atopic eczema (AE) are available. Objective We investigated the effect of airborne VOCs on the skin of patients with AE and controls in the presence or absence of house dust mite allergen, Der p 1. Methods In a double-blind crossover study, 12 adults with AE and 12 matched healthy volunteers were exposed on their forearms to Der p 1 and subsequently to a mixture of 22 VOCs (M22, 5 mg/m3) in a total body exposure chamber for 4 h. Transepidermal water loss (TEWL) and skin blood flow were measured in all subjects before, during and after exposure. Additionally, an atopy patch test (APT) with Der p 1 was applied to the skin after exposure. Results A significant increase in transepidermal water loss was observed 48 h after exposure to VOCs as compared with exposure with filtered air in all individuals (mean difference: +34%; 95% Confidence Interval: 7,69%). Prior Der p 1 exposure resulted in a significant rise of dermal blood flow after 48 h in patients with AE but not in controls. Six out of seven patients showed enhanced atopy patch test (APT) reactions to HDM allergen after previous exposure to VOCs. Conclusion Our results show that exposure to VOCs , at concentrations commonly found in indoor environments , can damage the epidermal barrier and enhance the adverse effect of Der p 1 on sensitized subjects with AE. These findings may contribute to a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying the increase in prevalence and exacerbation of AE. [source] | ||||||||||||||||