Assessment of regional fungal concentrations and diversity and their possible association with self-reported health effects among a national sample of office building occupants in the United States

Fungi have been implicated as causes of health problems among people, ranging from mild symptoms such as coughs or headaches, to more severe conditions such as allergic responses and infections. Since there are no government standards that indicate what fungal concentrations may be harmful if detected inside a building, it is of interest to study the types of fungi that are present in indoor environments in order to gain insights into their potential source, and to determine whether there are differences in the concentrations of fungi detected across climates that have differing temperatures and humidity. These factors, when compared with reported health effects of building occupants, will be helpful in understanding the relationship between the presence of fungi and peoples’ health. This project examines concentrations and types of fungi found in one hundred office buildings across ten climate zones in the United States, from data collected in the Environmental Health Agency’s Building Assessment and Survey Evaluation (BASE) study, and further examines the differences (and similarity) of fungal genera detected in winter and summer. The study also explored potential associations between self-reported adverse health effects of building occupants and a cross-sectional sampling of fungal concentrations.