Microorganisms in Home and Indoor Work Environments

Despite the large amount of money spent on research into pollution of the indoor environment, the problem remains complex with major gaps in our knowledge of the identities and sources of pollutants and of the effects of prolonged exposure to indoor pollutants on health. Microorganisms in Home and Indoor Work Environments considers one such group of pollutants, namely microorganisms, and more particularly heterotrophic bacteria and fungi. Although our understanding of microorganisms in the home and indoor work environment has accelerated in the last decade, fully elucidating their effects on human health has been plagued by problems of accurate assessment of exposure to microorganisms and precise identification of those present in the environment.This book provides a comprehensive review of the types of microorganism in outdoor and indoor air, their growth and control in home and work environments, and their role in allergic respiratory disease (such as rhinitis, asthma and occupational hypersensitivity pneumonitis) and respiratory tract infections including tuberculosis and legionnaires' disease. In addition, chapters address the twin problems of exposure assessment and identification, discuss the methodology for and conduction of investigations of indoor environments and provide keys and color illustrations to assist in the identification of almost one hundred mold, yeast and actinomycete contaminants.