Do hospital workers experience a higher risk of respiratory symptoms and loss of lung function?

Background: Hospital work environment contains various biological and chemical exposures that can affect indoor air quality and have impact on respiratory health of the staff. The objective of this study was to investigate potential effects of occupational exposures on the risk of respiratory symptoms and lung function in hospital work, and to evaluate potential interaction between smoking and occupational exposures.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 228 staff members in a hospital and 228 employees of an office building as the reference group in Shiraz, Iran.

Evaluating size-fractioned indoor particulate matter in an urban hospital in Iran.

Hospitals host vulnerable people with potentially enhanced sensitivity to air pollutants. We measured particulate matter (PM) including PM, PM, and PM with a portable device in a hospital, a nearby reference building, and ambient air in Shiraz, Iran. Indoor/outdoor (I/O) ratio values were calculated to infer on the origin of size-fractioned PM.

Indoor air quality-induced respiratory symptoms of a hospital staff in Iran.

The ambient air of hospitals contains a wide range of biological and chemical pollutants. Exposure to these indoor pollutants can be hazardous to the health of hospital staff. This study aims to evaluate the factors affecting indoor air quality and their effect on the respiratory health of staff members in a busy Iranian hospital.