Indoor Carbon Dioxide Concentrations and Sbs in Office Workers

Relationships between indoor carbon dioxide (CO2) levels and mucous membrane and lower respiratory sick building syndrome (SBS) symptoms are explored in 41 office buildings from the US EPA BASE study. Elevated indoor CO2 concentrations may indicate inadequate ventilation per occupant and elevated indoor pollutant concentrations, leading to SBS symptoms. Two CO2 metrics were constructed: average workday indoor minus average outdoor CO2 (dCO2, range 6-418 ppm), and maximum indoor one-hour moving average CO2 minus outdoor CO2 concentrations (dCO2MAX). Multivariate logistic regressions quantified dCO2/SBS symptom associations, adjusting for personal and environmental factors. A doseresponse relationship (p<0.05) with odds ratios per 100 ppm dCO2 ranging from 1.2 to 1.5 for sore throat, nose/sinus, tight chest, and wheezing was observed. The dCO2MAX/SBS regression results were similar. Implications: large increases in ventilation rate or improvements in ventilation effectiveness and/or indoor pollutant source control would be expected to decrease the prevalence of selected symptoms by up to 70-85%.