Quantity of Airborne Fungi in Resort Hotels, Thailand Choomsri Piyapong1, Khaikang Ratthaphol2, Longkul Jirapat3, Wattanasoei Supang3,* 1Student of Doctoral of Public Health, Faculty of Public Health, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen 2Faculty of Public Health, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen 3Faculty of Public Health, Thammasat University, Pathumthani, 12121, Thailand *Corresponding Author: Supang Wattanasoei, Ph. D Faculty of Public Health, Thammasat University, Rangsit Campus Piyachart-10th F1. Klong Luang Rangsit, Pathumthani, 12121, Thailand Phone: +6661-536-4452, Email: supang.watt@gmail.com
Online published on 25 September, 2018. Abstract Background The spreading of airborne fungi in an indoor building can lead to the respiratory tract infection (RTI). Resort hotels are found a high risk for airborne fungi contamination. The aim of this study was to evaluate the quantity of airborne fungi in resort hotels, Thailand. Method An analytical cross-sectional survey was conducted with a total of 1, 008 samples in 6 resort hotels in Loei province, Thailand between March, 2017 and February, 2018. The samples were collected by using Bio stage Impactor. Results Most frequent airborne fungi found were yeast (80.44%), Aspergillus spp. (17.14%), and Penicillium spp. (1.42%), respectively. The airborne fungi mean of indoor (I) and outdoor (O) were 15.51 ± 16.17 cfu/m3 (range 1.01–184.38 cfu/m3) and 78.06 ± 35.24 cfu/m3(range 2.03–629.80 cfu/m3), respectively. The I/O ratio was 0.33. Additionally, rainy season more likely increase the mean quantity of indoor airborne fungi (7.79 cfu/m3 and 5.12 cfu/m3) than summer and winter (95%CI: 6.07 to 9.52, 95%CI: 2.39 to 7.85, p < 0.001). Conclusions This study posts the significance for the planning of surveillance, policy makers and public health concern. Top Keywords Airborne fungi, resort hotel. Top |