ABSTRACT
Work Environment .........................................................................................47 2.6 Research Needs ..............................................................................................48 2.7 Conclusions ....................................................................................................49 Acknowledgments....................................................................................................49 References................................................................................................................49
A remarkably consistent association between home dampness and respiratory symptoms or asthma has been observed in a large number of population studies conducted across many geographical regions (Peat et al., 1998; Bornehag et al., 2001). Positive associations have been shown in infants (Nafstad et al., 1998; Øie et al., 1999), children (Brunekreef et al., 1989; Andriessen et al., 1998) and adults (Norback et al., 1999; Kilpelainen et al., 2001). Some evidence for dose-response relationships has also been demonstrated (Engvall et al., 2001). Although the evidence is not entirely consistent (Douwes and Pearce, 2003a), it has often been suggested that mold exposure plays a causal role in the association between indoor dampness and respiratory morbidity (Peat et al., 1998; Zock et al., 2002).
