Moisture damage in schools - symptoms and indoor air microbes.

The association of moisture damages of school buildings with microbial indoor air quality and health status of school children was studied. To determine the association the school buildings (N=32) were divided into the moisture damaged (index) and non-damaged (reference) schools according to technical inspection data. Children's health surveys were made by questionnaires. Microbes were determined from indoor air of school buildings using a six-stage impactor. Children in the index schools reported more respiratory symptoms compared to children in the reference schools. No significant differences in total concentrations of airborne viable fungi between the damaged and non-damaged schools could be shown. However, some differences in microbial flora were found.