Indoor dampness and molds and development of adult-onset asthma: a population-based incident case-control study
Abstract
Previous cross-sectional and prevalent case-control studies have suggested increased risk of asthma in adults related to dampness problems and molds in homes. We conducted a population-based incident case-control study to assess the effects of indoor dampness problems and molds at work and at home on development of asthma in adults. We recruited systematically all new cases of asthma during a 2.5-year study period (1997-2000) and randomly selected controls from a source population consisting of adults 21-63 years old living in the Pirkanmaa Hospital district, South Finland. The clinically diagnosed case series consisted of 521 adults with newly diagnosed asthma and the control series of 932 controls, after we excluded 76 (7.5%) controls with a history of asthma. In logistic regression analysis adjusting for confounders, the risk of asthma was related to the presence of visible mold and/or mold odor in the workplace (odds ratio, 1.54; 95% confidence interval, 1.01-2.32) but not to water damage or damp stains alone. We estimated the fraction of asthma attributable to workplace mold exposure to be 35.1% (95% confidence interval, 1.0-56.9%) among the exposed. Present results provide new evidence of the relation between workplace exposure to indoor molds and adult-onset asthma.
Cited By (14)
- Psychological, neuropsychological, and electrocortical effects of mixed mold exposureArchives of Environmental Health An International Journal · 2004
- Neural autoantibodies and neurophysiologic abnormalities in patients exposed to molds in water-damaged buildingsArchives of Environmental Health An International Journal · 2003
- Detection of trichothecene mycotoxins in sera from individuals exposed to Stachybotrys chartarum in indoor environmentsArchives of Environmental Health An International Journal · 2004
- Building-related respiratory symptoms can be predicted with semi-quantitative indices of exposure to dampness and moldIndoor Air · 2004
- Identification of Mold and Dampness‐Associated Respiratory Morbidity in 2 Schools: Comparison of Questionnaire Survey Responses to National DataJournal of School Health · 2008
- Prevalence and incidence of respiratory symptoms in relation to indoor dampness: the RHINE studyThorax · 2006
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