Ventilation rate as a determinant of symptoms and perceived odours among workers in daycare centres.

Assesses sick building syndrome symptoms and perceived odours for daycare workers, in relation to ventilation rates in Finnish daycare centres. Thirty centres were chosen for the study, which consisted of 268 female nursing workers. The workers completed a questionnaire. Mechanical supply and exhaust ventilation systems constituted most of the centres' systems with 37% having mechanical exhaust alone. The authors noted a very varied exhaust air flow in the children's rooms, from 0 to 11 L/s per person. Air change rate varied from 0 to 5 m3/hm3. No consistent relationships were seen between the value of the airflows or air change rate and the occurrence of symptoms or bad odours. Concludes that relatively low mechanical ventilation rates are not related to sick building syndrome symptoms and bad odours in conditions of strong potential odour and where air change is not totally dependent on mechanical ventilation.