EFFECTS OF INFLUENZA PREVENTION ON INDOOR TEMPERATURE AND HUMIDITY ENVIRONMENT IN CHILDREN'S FACILITIES DURING WINTER (PART 1): EXAMINATION USING QUESTIONNAIRE AND FIELD SURVEY IN THE SOUTHERN TOHOKU REGION

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  • 幼稚園・保育所等におけるインフルエンザ対策の室内温湿度環境への影響（その１）：南東北地方の施設を対象としたアンケート調査と冬季実測調査を用いた検討
  • ヨウチエン ・ ホイクジョ トウ ニ オケル インフルエンザ タイサク ノ シツナイオン シツド カンキョウ エ ノ エイキョウ(ソノ 1)ミナミトウホク チホウ ノ シセツ オ タイショウ ト シタ アンケート チョウサ ト トウキ ジッソク チョウサ オ モチイタ ケントウ

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Abstract

<p> The indoor temperature, humidity and air environment at children's facilities such as kindergartens, nursery schools, and child institutions need to be carefully adjusted in order to keep children healthy. Especially during the winter, it is important to prevent the spread of infectious diseases including influenza. This study aims to evaluate the actual conditions of indoor temperature, humidity, and CO2 concentration, and the environmental control and influenza measures used in children's facilities during winter. We conducted a questionnaire survey and a field survey of kindergartens and nursery schools, and child institutions in the southern Tohoku region. The purpose of the questionnaire survey was to estimate the availability of installed air purifiers, humidifiers, and other indoor environmental adjustment methods. The purpose of the field survey was to evaluate the air environment, actual temperature, and humidity, of children's facilities during winter, and to clarify the factors that influence them.</p><p> The survey targets were children's facilities located in the Miyagi and Yamagata prefectures in the southern Tohoku region. The questionnaire survey was conducted from October to November 2017. The questionnaire was distributed to 538 facilities, and the effective recovery rate was 50.6%. The field surveys were conducted in three or four childcare rooms at each of eight facilities from January to February 2018. In each facility, the indoor temperature and relative humidity in each childcare room were measured. Additionally, at one facility, the CO2 concentration was measured in a room for five years old.</p><p> The major findings are as follows:</p><p> 1) The installation rate and the perfection rate of air purifiers and humidifiers in the southern Tohoku region were the highest, and they were superior to the rates in the Tokai and Hokuriku regions. Moreover, the influenza countermeasures used in southern Tohoku tend to emphasize humidification and is significantly different from the approach used in the Tokai and Hokuriku regions.</p><p> 2) The temperature in the childcare room was approximately 15.9-23.7 °C, the relative humidity was 23.5-52.3 % and the absolute humidity was 3.7-7.3 g/kg’.</p><p> 3) Air changes per hour in the southern Tohoku region was 2.0, which was about the intermediate level compared to the Gifu and Hokuriku regions. In addition, it was suggested that the indoor CO2 concentration may exceed 1500ppm if the number of children exceeds 0.2 person/m3.</p><p> 4) Children's facilities in the southern Tohoku region tend to emphasize on humidification, against the background of the lowest absolute humidity and have been able to keep indoor absolute humidity higher than that in the Gifu area included in the Tokai region.</p><p> 5) Children's facilities that emphasize humidification tend to have higher indoor absolute humidity on the day of the spread of infection than Children's facilities that emphasize ventilation. Furthermore, CO2 concentration also tended to be high. Therefore, there is a possibility that the ventilation volume is insufficient, and it is also necessary to consider the air cleanliness.</p>

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