Objective During the induction of gaseous anaesthesia, waste anaesthetic gases (WAGs) can be released into workplace air. Occupational exposure to high levels of halogenated WAGs may lead to adverse ...health effects; hence, it is important to measure WAGs concentration levels to perform risk assessment and for health protection purposes. Methods A systematic review of the scientific literature was conducted on two different scientific databases (Scopus and PubMed). A total of 101 studies, focused on sevoflurane, desflurane and isoflurane exposures in hospitals, were included in this review. Key information was extracted to provide (1) a description of the study designs (e.g., monitoring methods, investigated occupational settings, anaesthetic gases in use); (2) an evaluation of time trends in the measured concentrations of considered WAGs; (3) a critical evaluation of the sampling strategies, monitoring methods and instruments used. Results Environmental monitoring was prevalent (68%) and mainly used for occupational exposure assessment during adult anaesthesia (84% of cases). Real-time techniques such as photoacoustic spectroscopy and infrared spectrophotometry were used in 58% of the studies, while off-line approaches such as active or passive sampling followed by GC-MS analysis were used less frequently (39%). Conclusions The combination of different instrumental techniques allowing the collection of data with different time resolutions was quite scarce (3%) despite the fact that this would give the opportunity to obtain reliable data for testing the compliance with 8 h occupational exposure limit values and at the same time to evaluate short-term exposures.
Indoor air quality (IAQ) measurements were carried out in two field campaigns (summer and winter) in European office buildings (approximately 140 office rooms) in eight countries, as part of the ...EU-funded OFFICAIR project. A source identification study was performed with principal component analysis (varimax rotation) on a database containing volatile organic compound (VOC) and aldehyde concentration data during summer and winter monitoring campaigns. The common indoor and outdoor sources of VOCs and aldehydes were identified through a critical evaluation based on checklist data and knowledge of material and product emissions from the literature.
The dominant source of variance, accounting for 29% and 26% of the explained variance in the summer and winter campaigns, respectively, was attributed to the ingress of outdoor air into indoor environments. The other most relevant sources for variance were directly or indirectly associated with building materials, such as flooring materials (in particular carpets), wood-based products and various types of paint. Ozone-initiated indoor air chemistry played a key role only during summer, in which a specific source linked to ozone-initiated reactions was clearly identified. Other indoor sources explained less than 10% of the variance, such as printer emissions in both campaigns and cleaning products in winter.
•VOCs and aldehydes were sampled in European offices to identify emission sources.•The major VOC sources are of outdoor origin in both seasonal campaigns.•The other important sources derive from building material emissions.•Ozone-initiated reactions were clearly identified only in summer.•Less prominent sources are linked to cleaning products and office equipment.
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) represent one of the most important categories of pollutants, influencing the air quality and human health and well-being in indoor environments. In the present ...study, 12 selected VOCs were sampled using Tenax TA tubes and analyzed by thermal desorption combined with gas chromatography and a flame ionization detector (TD-GC-FID). The TD-GC-FID method was optimized to obtain the separation of all the analytical peaks (including m- and p-xylene) and a satisfactory sensitivity, with low detection (between 0.14 and 0.31 ng) and quantification (between 0.47 and 1.02 ng) limits. The whole procedure was firstly assessed with the analysis of four co-located tubes exposed at an outdoor monitoring site, with results that revealed a very low inter-tubes variability (relative standard deviations of parallel measurements <5%). Then, the measurement protocol was used to quantify the indoor concentrations of the target VOCs in nine different homes during the dishwasher washing cycle. The most abundant detected VOC in all dwellings was d-limonene (mean: 231 µg/m3; maximum: 611 µg/m3). All the other compounds were monitored at concentration levels one or two orders of magnitude lower than d-limonene, and were generally comparable with those found in the scientific literature. In terms of health concerns, the measured concentrations were always well below the safe levels established for the protection of the general population in living environments.
To investigate the ambient mass concentration, size-distribution and temporal variability of atmospheric particulate matter (PM), a long-term monitoring campaign was undertaken at an urban background ...site in Como, Northern Italy, from May 2015 to March 2016. A 13-stage Low Pressure Impactor (DLPI) was used for the collection of size-segregated particulates in the 0.028-10 μm size range. The results revealed a good level of agreement between DLPI and a co-located Harvard-type PM_(2.5) Impactor, allowing them to be classified as comparable and characterized by a reciprocal predictability. The PM concentration levels varied greatly between the different 5-days monitoring sessions, with higher mean mass concentrations during the heating season. Appreciable seasonal differences were found for particles between 0.15 and 1.60 μm that, on average, registered concentration levels 3.5 times higher during the heating season (mean: 28.2 μg m^(-3); median: 24.4 μg m^(-3)) compared to the non-heating season (mean: 8.3 μg m^(-3); median: 7.6 μg m^(-3)). No relevant and significant differences were detected for the coarser ranges (＞ 1.60 μm). Temporal variabilities were influenced by typical PM urban sources (e.g., household heating, traffic), that significantly affected fine and submicrometer particles, and were related to meteorological factors. Ambient air particles exhibited a trimodal distribution: a first and sharp peak more pronounced during the heating season was identified between 0.3 and 0.5 μm and two other slight peaks in the coarse mode were centered on approximately 3 and 8 μm. No relevant differences were found in the shape of the size-distribution between the two investigated seasons. The mean PM_(2.5) (22.4 μg m^(-3)) and PM_(10) (27.7 μg m^(-3)) concentrations monitored in the study area exceeded the annual Air Quality Guideline Values (respectively equal to 10 μg m^(-3) and 20 μg m^(-3)) established by the World Health Organization.
The aim of this study was to identify determinants of aldehyde and volatile organic compound (VOC) indoor air concentrations in a sample of more than 140 office rooms, in the framework of the ...European OFFICAIR research project. A large field campaign was performed, which included (a) the air sampling of aldehydes and VOCs in 37 newly built or recently retrofitted office buildings across 8 European countries in summer and winter and (b) the collection of information on building and offices’ characteristics using checklists. Linear mixed models for repeated measurements were applied to identify the main factors affecting the measured concentrations of selected indoor air pollutants (IAPs). Several associations between aldehydes and VOCs concentrations and buildings’ structural characteristic or occupants’ activity patterns were identified. The aldehyde and VOC determinants in office buildings include building and furnishing materials, indoor climate characteristics (room temperature and relative humidity), the use of consumer products (eg, cleaning and personal care products, office equipment), as well as the presence of outdoor sources in the proximity of the buildings (ie, vehicular traffic). Results also showed that determinants of indoor air concentrations varied considerably among different type of pollutants.
This study aimed to assess the performance, in terms of precision and accuracy, of a prototype (called "P.ALP"-Ph.D. Air Quality Low-cost Project) developed for monitoring PM
concentration levels. ...Four prototypes were co-located with reference instrumentation in four different microenvironments simulating real-world and working conditions, namely (i) office, (ii) home, (iii) outdoor, and (iv) occupational environments. The devices were evaluated for a total of 20 monitoring days (approximately 168 h) under a wide range of PM
concentrations. The performances of the prototypes (based on the light-scattering working principle) were tested through different statistical methods. After the data acquisition and data cleaning processes, a linear regression analysis was performed to assess the precision (by comparing all possible pairs of devices) and the accuracy (by comparing the prototypes against the reference instrumentation) of the P.ALP. Moreover, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) criteria were applied to assess the possible usage of this instrumentation, and to evaluate the eventual error trends of the P.ALP in the data storage process, Bland-Altman plots were also adopted. The outcomes of this study underlined that the P.ALP performed differently depending on the microenvironment in which it was tested and, consequently, on the PM
concentrations. The device can monitor PM
variations with acceptable results, but the performance cannot be considered satisfactory at extremely low and remarkably high PM
concentrations. Thanks to modular components and open-source software, the tested device has the potential to be customized and adapted to better fit specific study design needs, but it must be implemented with ad hoc calibration factors depending on the application before being used in field.
Several studies evaluating exposure to pollutants in microenvironments (MEs) are available in the scientific literature, but studies that evaluate the inhaled doses of pollutants are few in number. ...Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the exposure of commuters to different pollutants (i.e., nitrogen dioxide NO
and fractionated particulate matter PM, including ultrafine particles UFPs) using miniaturized and portable real-time monitoring instruments in selected MEs; the inhaled doses of these pollutants were estimated for each of these MEs. Measurements were performed along a typical commute, considering different traffic and nontraffic MEs. Experimental data were collected over four working weeks in two different seasons (winter and summer). Different portable and miniaturized instruments were used to evaluate PM and NO
exposure. Furthermore, physiological parameters were evaluated using a heart rate monitor. The principal results show that higher exposure levels were measured in Underground (for all PM fractions and NO
) and in Car (UFP), while lower levels were measured in Car (PM and NO
) and in Train (UFP). In contrast, higher values of the inhaled cumulative dose were estimated in environments defined as Other, followed by Walking (ht), while lower values were observed in Walking (lt) and in Car.
Personal control over various indoor environment parameters, especially in the last decades, appear to have a significant role on occupants’ comfort, health and productivity. To reveal this complex ...relationship, 7441 occupants of 167 recently built or retrofitted office buildings in eight European countries participated in an online survey about personal/health/work data as well as physical/psycho-social information. The relationship between the types of control available over indoor environments and the perceived personal control of the occupants was examined, as well as the combined effect of the control parameters on the perceived comfort using multilevel statistical models. The results indicated that most of the occupants have no or low control on noise. Half of the occupants declared no or low control on ventilation and temperature conditions. Almost one-third of them remarked that they do not have satisfactory levels of control for lighting and shading from sun conditions. The presence of operable windows was shown to influence occupants’ control perception over temperature, ventilation, light and noise. General building characteristics, such as floor number and floor area, office type, etc., helped occupants associate freedom positively with control perception. Combined controlling parameters seem to have a strong relation with overall comfort, as well as with perception regarding amount of privacy, office layout and decoration satisfaction. The results also indicated that occupants with more personal control may have less building-related symptoms. Noise control parameter had the highest impact on the occupants’ overall comfort.
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) represent a plausible molecular mechanism linking particulate matter (PM) inhalation to its systemic effects. Microvesicles (MVs) are released from many cell types in ...response to various stimuli. Increased body mass index (BMI) could modify the response to PM exposure due to enhanced PM uptake and/or an underlying pro-oxidative state.
We investigated the relationship between EV release and PM10/PM2.5 exposure in a cohort of 51 volunteers. Subjects were stratified based on their BMI to evaluate whether overweight BMI is a determinant of hypersusceptibility to PM effects.
Exposure to PM10/PM2.5 was assessed with a personal sampler worn for 24hours before plasma collection and confirmed with monitoring station data. Size and cellular origin of plasma EVs were characterized by Nanosight analysis and flow cytometry, respectively. Multivariate regression models were run after log-transformation, stratifying subjects based on BMI (≥ or <25kg/m2).
PM exposure resulted in increased release of EVs, with the maximum observed effect for endothelial MVs. For PM10 and PM2.5, the adjusted geometric mean ratio and 95% confidence interval were 3.47 (1.30, 9.27) and 3.14 (1.23, 8.02), respectively. Compared to those in normal subjects, PM-induced EV alterations in overweight subjects were more pronounced, with visibly effect in all MV subtypes, particularly endothelial MVs.
Our findings emphasize the role of EV release after PM exposure and the susceptibility of overweight subjects. Larger studies with accurate exposure assessment and complete EVs characterization/content analysis, could further clarify the molecular mechanism responsible for PM effects and of hypersusceptibility of overweight subjects.
•We investigated the association between EV release and personal exposure to PM.•Increased PM exposure was associated with increased release of EVs.•The maximum effect was found for endothelial EVs.•PM-induced EV alterations were more pronounced in overweight subjects.
Studies on air quality in rural environments are fundamental to obtain first-hand data for the determination of base emissions of air pollutants, to assess the impact of rural-specific airborne ...pollutants, to model pollutant dispersion, and to develop proper pollution mitigation technologies. The literature lacks a systematic review based on the evaluation of the techniques and methods used for the sampling/monitoring (S/M) of atmospheric pollutants in rural and agricultural settings, which highlights the shortcomings in this field and the need for future studies. This work aims to review the study design applied for on-field monitoring campaigns of airborne pollutants in rural environments and discuss the possible needs and future developments in this field. The results of this literature review, based on the revision of 23 scientific papers, allowed us to determine (i) the basic characteristics related to the study design that should always be reported; (ii) the main techniques and analyses used in exposure assessment studies conducted in this type of setting; and (iii) contextual parameters and descriptors of the S/M site that should be considered to best support the results obtained from the different studies. Future studies carried out to monitor the airborne pollution in rural/agriculture areas should (i) include the use of multiparametric monitors for the contextual measurement of different atmospheric pollutants (as well as meteorological parameters) and (ii) consider the most important boundary information, to better characterize the S/M site.
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