Finnish study links child asthma with structural dampness in buildings

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Finnish study links child asthma with structural dampness in

buildings

Helsingin Sanomat - Helsinki,Uusimaa,Finland

http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Finnish+study+links+child+asthma+wit

h+structural+dampness+in+buildings/1135225430479

A fresh study by the Environmental Health section of the National

Public Health Institute shows a strong link between asthma in

children and dampness in the building structures of the home.

According to an article in the upcoming edition of the

European Respiratory Journal, at least one in ten, and possibly as

many as one in five cases of asthma among children are linked with

water damage in the building.

The onset of asthma is the result of the cumulative effect of many

factors. Nevertheless, in the 1990s there was a rapid increase in

cases of asthma in Finland, as well as an increase in damage caused

by dampness in buildings.

More recently, cases of asthma have declined.

The prognosis for young children being treated for asthma is

quite good; many are completely cured.

When the small children involved in the study were diagnosed

with asthma, two building engineers were sent to the home to look

for signs of dampness: leaks of water and stains they may have left

behind, discolouration in building materials, flaking paint on

walls, fungal odour, or visible fungus.

The engineers also visited the homes of children in a control

group. These children, who did not have asthma, were of the same age

as the ones who did, living in the same kinds of buildings and in

the same area.

It was found that the homes of children with asthma were more likely

to have windows that fogged up in cold weather, as well as

humidifiers and supplementary heaters.

Dampness and visible fungus in living areas had a significant

correlation with the frequency of asthma; fungus in cellars and

saunas, where children spend less time than in their bedrooms, were

less significant.

The researchers recommended that closer attention be paid to

the planning, implementation, and maintenance of buildings.

The degree of the damage also affected the risk of illness.

The more serious the damage, the greater the danger that a child

might come down with asthma.

The mechanism that leads to the onset of the disease is not

known, but materials damaged by dampness and fungus put out

particles similar to microbes and spores, as well as even smaller

fragments.

It has been estimated that between 84 and 95 per cent of

fungus spores and 27 to 46 per cent of fragments can end up in the

lungs, and it is believed that the fragments can get into the lower

respiratory tracts of small children more easily than that of

others, according to laboratory nurse Aino Nevalainen and researcher

Anne Hyvärinen in an article in the Finnish medical journal

Lääkärilehti. Nevalainen and Hyvärinen conducted the new study along

with research professor Juha Pekkarinen.

Dust mites are not seen to be major culprits. Researchers note that

there are few dust mites in Finnish homes and that they emerge

irregularly, because indoor air tends to be dry most of the year.

Dust mites were as common in the beds of children without

asthma as in those of children who have the disease.