ABSTRACT

An estimated 1.34 million of›ce buildings have problems with air quality, and approximately 30 percent of all of›ce employees are potentially exposed to the health effects of poor indoor air quality.1 More than 50 million Americans suffer from asthma, allergies, and hay fever. Chronic bronchitis and emphysema increased by more than 85 percent between 1970 and 1987. Close to 100,000 Americans die each year because of complications due to chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD).1 More than 50 percent of our nation’s schools have poor ventilation and signi›cant sources of pollution in buildings, where an estimated 55 million students and school staff members are affected by poor air quality. Health effects are predominantly observed in children with asthma. In the last 15 years, a 60 percent increase in the incidence of asthma has occurred amongst school-aged children. Today approximately 8 percent of all school-aged children have been diagnosed with asthma.