Indoor air risk factors for schoolchildren's health in Portuguese homes: Results from a case-control survey.

Allergic diseases have been on the rise in many countries over the past few decades and indoor exposure may be a possible cause. An overall investigation of children's health status and residential indoor air pollutants known or suspected to affect respiratory health was conducted in the homes of primary schoolchildren during winter in Porto, Portugal. In a case-control study (30 case children with asthma and 38 controls) and over a 1-wk monitoring period, air sample collection was conducted in children's bedrooms for the analysis of 12 volatile organic compounds (VOC), aldehydes, particulate matter (PM)2.5, PM10, bacteria, and fungi. Home exposures to indoor pollutants are similar for children with and without asthma, except for d-limonene. For both groups, most VOC were present at low concentrations (median < 5 µg/m(3)) and below the respective World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. Concentrations of PM2.5, PM10, and bacteria were frequently higher than WHO/reference values (80, 25, and 60% of all studied dwellings, respectively). Concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2) exceeding 1000 ppm were encountered in 60% of the homes. Although this study does not provide evidence of causative factors for asthmatic status, the postulation that poor indoor air quality in homes heightens the risk of allergic symptoms development among children is conceivable.