IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v19y2022i6p3613-d774160.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Direct-Read Fluorescence-Based Measurements of Bioaerosol Exposure in Home Healthcare

Author

Listed:
  • Vishal D. Nathu

    (Department of Environmental & Public Health Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45267-0056, USA)

  • Jurate Virkutyte

    (Department of Environmental & Public Health Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45267-0056, USA)

  • Marepalli B. Rao

    (Department of Environmental & Public Health Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45267-0056, USA)

  • Marina Nieto-Caballero

    (Department of Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering & Applied Science, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309-0428, USA)

  • Mark Hernandez

    (Department of Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering & Applied Science, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309-0428, USA)

  • Tiina Reponen

    (Department of Environmental & Public Health Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45267-0056, USA)

Abstract

Home healthcare workers (HHCWs) are subjected to variable working environments which increase their risk of being exposed to numerous occupational hazards. One of the potential occupational hazards within the industry includes exposure to bioaerosols. This study aimed to characterize concentrations of three types of bioaerosols utilizing a novel fluorescence-based direct-reading instrument during seven activities that HHCWs typically encounter in patients’ homes. Bioaerosols were measured in an indoor residence throughout all seasons in Cincinnati, OH, USA. A fluorescence-based direct-reading instrument (InstaScope, DetectionTek, Boulder, CO, USA) was utilized for all data collection. Total particle counts and concentrations for each particle type, including fluorescent and non-fluorescent particles, were utilized to form the response variable, a normalized concentration calculated as a ratio of concentration during activity to the background concentration. Walking experiments produced a median concentration ratio of 52.45 and 2.77 for pollen and fungi, respectively. Fungi and bacteria produced the highest and lowest median concentration ratios of 17.81 and 1.90 for showering, respectively. Lastly, our current study showed that sleeping activity did not increase bioaerosol concentrations. We further conclude that utilizing direct-reading methods may save time and effort in bioaerosol-exposure assessment.

Suggested Citation

  • Vishal D. Nathu & Jurate Virkutyte & Marepalli B. Rao & Marina Nieto-Caballero & Mark Hernandez & Tiina Reponen, 2022. "Direct-Read Fluorescence-Based Measurements of Bioaerosol Exposure in Home Healthcare," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(6), pages 1-15, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:6:p:3613-:d:774160
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/6/3613/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/6/3613/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Chunxiao Su & Josephine Lau & Fang Yu, 2017. "A Case Study of Upper-Room UVGI in Densely-Occupied Elementary Classrooms by Real-Time Fluorescent Bioaerosol Measurements," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(1), pages 1-11, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Christopher W. Ryan, 2023. "Decreased Respiratory-Related Absenteeism among Preschool Students after Installation of Upper Room Germicidal Ultraviolet Light: Analysis of Newly Discovered Historical Data," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-11, January.
    2. Hanns Moshammer & Stana Simic & Daniela Haluza, 2017. "UV-Radiation: From Physics to Impacts," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-5, February.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:6:p:3613-:d:774160. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.