A review of sampling and analysis methods for assessing airborne microbiological contamination on commercial aircraft: a literature survey and review.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Hernandez M ; Swartz M
• Description:
  Exposure to airborne particles of microbiological origin is increasingly being recognized as responsible for infectious, hypersensitivity, and inflammatory lung diseases. Such particles are referred to as biological aerosols, or "bioaerosols," and include but are not limited to bacteria, fungi, their spores and fragments thereof (associated toxins), and viruses. Modem aircraft use pressurized cabins to transport millions of passengers each year. With the occupant levels experienced by the air transport industry, concerns regarding human exposure to bioaerosols have been raised among the traveling public, flight crews, scientific communities, and regulatory agencies. Based on extensive monitoring, professional societies have published guidelines suggesting acceptable ranges for bioaerosol exposures in indoor environments, yet it is not established if such exposure thresholds should apply to commercial aircraft, nor is it established what bioaerosol exposures are experienced by the average passenger during routine air travel. For the purpose of better characterizing the air quality in commercial aircraft cabins, germane literature from respected sources within the fields of industrial hygiene, environmental microbiology, and medical microbiology have been surveyed and summarized. This survey has focused on a comprehensive characterization of bioaerosols in aircraft using the best available technology, and is divided into the following sections: bioaerosol collection in currently marketed and research-grade air samplers; assays and analytical methodologies used to characterize airborne bacteria, fungi, spores, viruses, and microbiologically associated toxins following collection; summary of guidelines germane to the microbiological air quality in aircraft cabins; summary of aircraft air quality case studies that have a significant bioaerosol component; and recommendations for future aircraft bioaerosol studies.
• Subjects:
  Accidents, Occupational Dust Manufacturing And Industrial Facilities Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Respiratory Protective Devices Respiratory System Safety
• Keywords:
  Aerosols Aerospace-environment Air-contamination Air-flow Air-quality-control Air-transportation Airborne-particles Aircraft Aircrews Analytical-processes Disease-prevention Disease-transmission Microbiology Microorganisms Pulmonary-system-disorders Respiratory-system-disorders

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• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Purchase Order
• Genre:
  Purchase Order Report
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 5 ; OSHA Region 8
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DPSE - Division of Physical Sciences and Engineering
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-91
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20024025
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Purchase Order 9936697, 1999 Nov; :1-91
• Contact Point Address:
  University of Colorado at Boulder, Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering, Box 428, Boulder, CO 80309
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2000
• Performing Organization:
  University of Colorado at Boulder, Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering, Boulder, Colorado
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  19990512
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• End Date:
  19991130
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:428af8ec8dc76d2649d5481d4b5f8ea2bc13ed919b56bfdbc462a9ad21a79d23516ed208a76da7c01da4863c7b0864bf02b04dad69a477dd5627dd02a03951e9
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/181163/cdc_181163_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 4.47 MB ]