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UV Lamp Air Purification Could Reduce Worker Sickness
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Sickness among office workers in industrialized countries could be reduced by using ultraviolet lamps to kill germs in ventilation systems through air purification, new research indicates.
Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation air purifiers, or UVGI, are sometimes used in hospital ventilation systems to disinfect the air but is rarely incorporated into office or other building ducts because there has been little evidence of a benefit.
About 70% of the work force in North America and Western Europe work indoors, and frequently have unexplained health problems such as irritation of the eyes, throat and nose, as well as respiratory illnesses.
In a study published this week in The Lancet medical journal, Canadian scientists found that use of an air purifier reduced overall worker sickness by about 20%, including a 40% drop in breathing problems.
"Installation of UVGI in most North American offices could resolve work-related symptoms in about 4 million employees, caused by (germ) contamination of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems," said the study's leader, Dr. Dick Menzies from the Montreal Chest Institute at McGill University in Montreal, Canada.
"The cost of UVGI installation could in the long run prove cost-effective compared with the yearly losses from absence because of building-related illness," he added.
A total of 771 employees from three different office buildings in Montreal were involved with the study.
The ultraviolet lamps were aimed at the cooling coils and drip pans in the ventilation systems of the buildings. The air purifier lights were turned on for four weeks, then turned off for 12 weeks. The cycle was repeated three times for almost a year.
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