Do Questions Reflecting Indoor Air Pollutant Exposure from a Questionnaire Predict Direct Measure of Exposure in Owner-Occupied Houses?

C.K. Jennifer Loo, Richard G. Foty, Amanda J. Wheeler, J. David Miller, Greg Evans, David M. Stieb and Sharon D. Dell
Additional contact information
C.K. Jennifer Loo: University of Toronto, 1 King’s College Circle, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A8, Canada
Richard G. Foty: The Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8, Canada
Amanda J. Wheeler: Health Canada, 269 Laurier Ave West, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0K9, Canada
J. David Miller: Chemistry Department, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario K1S 5B6, Canada
Greg Evans: University of Toronto, 200 College Street, Toronto, Ontario M5S 2E5, Canada
David M. Stieb: Health Canada, 269 Laurier Ave West, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0K9, Canada
Sharon D. Dell: The Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8, Canada

IJERPH, 2010, vol. 7, issue 8, 1-28

Abstract: Home characteristic questions are used in epidemiological studies and clinical settings to assess potentially harmful exposures in the home. The objective of this study was to determine whether questionnaire-reported home characteristics can predict directly measured pollutants. Sixty home inspections were conducted on a subsample of the 2006 population-based Toronto Child Health Evaluation Questionnaire. Indoor/outdoor air and settled dust samples were analyzed. Mean Fel d 1 was higher (p versus without (22.28 µg/g). Mean indoor NO 2 was higher (p = 0.003) in homes with gas stoves (14.98 ppb) versus without (8.31 ppb). Self-reported musty odours predicted higher glucan levels (10554.37 µg/g versus 6308.58 µg/g, p = 0.0077). Der f 1 was predicted by the home’s age, but not by reports of carpets, and was higher in homes with mean relative humidity > 50% (61.30 µg/g, versus 6.24 µg/g, p = 0.002). Self-reported presence of a cat, a gas stove, musty odours, mice, and the home’s age and indoor relative humidity over 50% predicted measured indoor levels of cat allergens, NO 2 , fungal glucan, mouse allergens and dust mite allergens, respectively. These results are helpful for understanding the significance of indoor exposures ascertained by self-reporting in large epidemiological studies and also in the clinical setting.

Keywords: allergens; environmental exposure; house dust; indoor air pollution; questionnaire (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2010
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