Sick building symptoms among hospital workers associated with indoor air quality and personal factors

Abstract

This study assesses the interior air quality and infective factors in a hospital in Turkey to provide data about air quality to protect hospital workers. This study measured indoor air quality in eight different locations in a hospital, including particulate matter (PM_2.5 and PM₁), carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, temperature, humidity and microbiological matter. The highest PM_2.5 and PM₁ concentrations were in emergency service, and the highest CO₂ was measured in the paediatric clinic. The poor interior air quality results are the most important cross-sectional data. For all participants, the prevalence of eye, upper respiratory tract, lower respiratory tract, skin and non-specific sick building syndrome symptoms were 23.0%, 40.7%, 22.5%, 36.3% and 63.7%, respectively. When sick building syndrome symptoms and environmental factors were investigated, skin symptoms increased 1.82 times in areas with stagnant air flow (p = 0.046; OR = 1.823; 95% CI: 1.010–3.290). Non-specific symptoms increased 2.17 times in locations with dry indoor air (p = 0.039; OR = 2.176; 95% CI: 1.041–4.549). Hospital workers are exposed to conditions that may increase the risk of a variety of sick building syndrome symptoms. Although the air quality measurements were not above the recommended limits in the hospital, long-term exposures should be considered for those experiencing sick building syndrome-related symptoms.