Aerobiology as a tool to help in episodes of occupational allergy in work places © 2004 Esmon Publicidad J Invest Allergol Clin Immunol 2004; Vol. 14(4): 300-308 Original Article Aerobiology as a tool to help in episodes of occupational allergy in work places P. Cariñanos, P. Alcázar, C. Galán, R. Navarro, E. Domínguez Plant Biology Department. University of Córdoba. Campus Universitario de Rabanales. Colonia San José 4. Ctra. Madrid, Km 396. E-14071 Córdoba, Spain. Introduction Most citizens in an urban environment spend over 80% of weekdays inside closed buildings. Attendance at school (6 hours/day), full-time jobs (7 hours/day), time at home (6-8hours/day), together with more recent indoor leisure activities such as shopping-centres, cinemas, restaurants and children’s play centres, result in much less time spent in the open air. Moreover, fresh air has traditionally been considered more polluted and of worse quality than the air we breathe indoors [1-6]. However, many studies have addressed the effects of Abstract. Over 80% of weekday time is spent indoors and the air quality of this environment may affect the incidence of symptoms in allergy sufferers. However, indoor/outdoor measurements have been jointly considered only in a few studies. The objective of this paper is to analyse indoor/outdoor biological and non-biological particle content togeher with other factors affecting the severity of symptoms during working periods in an Aerobiology Lab during the most troublesome period of the year for allergy sufferers. For this purpose, indoor/ outdoor air samples were taken using standard portable particle traps at the National Coordinating Centre of the Spanish Aerobiology Network, University of Cordoba. The analysis differentiated between biological and non- biological material, and the allergy symptoms suffered by workers were quantified and correlated accordingly. An inventory of the incoming and outgoing sources of emissions was done in order to identify agravating co-factors. The results showed that since there was very little air movement between indoors and outdoors, there was a significant difference in the amount of biological material present in the two areas. The presence of some indoor source of emissions, such as the Plant Collections property of the Department, the Air Conditioned System and the volatile compounds of the copying machine was responsible of high particle content. External factors such as weather conditions or human activities contributed exacerbating symptoms. As Conclusion, the knowledge of airborne biological particle content could be a useful tool in minimising allergy symptoms when environmental conditions render them inevitable. Keywords: Occupational Allergy, Aerobiology, indoor/outdoor particle content, air quality, pollen allergy, indoor environment, allergenic activity, pollinosis symptoms, asthma. pollution on human health using stationary outdoor particle traps. Only on a few occasions have indoor/ outdoor measurements been considered jointly [7-9]. The team at the National Coordinating Centre of the Spanish Aerobiology Network (REA) has been monitoring airborne biological content in the city of Cordoba for the last twenty years. On occasions, the data generated has been “useful first-hand information” for those members of the team who are themselves hay- fever patients. Latterly, however, poor air quality has adversely affected not only known allergy sufferers, who experience more frequent crises and more aggressive