Abstract
Objectives: This study aimed to assess temporal changes in the level of culturable airborne fungi (CAF) in three microbiology laboratories and determine the environmental factors associated with CAF level. Methods: CAF levels were determined once per month from March 2011 to February 2012 in three microbiology laboratories. An Andersen one-stage sampler was used for five minutes, three times per day to collect the CAF. Arithmetic means of CAF concentrations and standard deviation (SD) were calculated. A Mann-Whitney test was applied to compare the differences between environmental factors such as divided room by structure of laboratory, use of humidifier, and use of air-conditioner. Correlation analysis was also applied to identify the association between CAF concentrations and environmental factors. Results: CAF levels demonstrated an increasing tendency in summer, and the three laboratories showed consistent seasonal patterns. Temperature and relative humidity (RH) were associated with CAF levels. When the humidifier was off, CAF concentrations were significantly higher in study rooms than in study rooms in which the humidifier was on. Conclusion: CAF levels in indoor microbiology laboratories varied greatly depending upon the temperature and RH and whether a humidifier was used.
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