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Indoor Radon Exposure in Italian Schools

Background: The aim of the study was to assess radon concentration in schoolrooms in a city located in the midwest of Italy. Methods: A two-phase environmental study was carried out in 19 school buildings of 16 primary, secondary, and tertiary schools. Results: Median (interquartile range—IQR) indoo...

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Autores principales: Azara, Antonio, Dettori, Marco, Castiglia, Paolo, Piana, Andrea, Durando, Paolo, Parodi, Valentina, Salis, Giovanni, Saderi, Laura, Sotgiu, Giovanni
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: MDPI 2018
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5923791/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29652857
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15040749
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author Azara, Antonio
Dettori, Marco
Castiglia, Paolo
Piana, Andrea
Durando, Paolo
Parodi, Valentina
Salis, Giovanni
Saderi, Laura
Sotgiu, Giovanni
author_facet Azara, Antonio
Dettori, Marco
Castiglia, Paolo
Piana, Andrea
Durando, Paolo
Parodi, Valentina
Salis, Giovanni
Saderi, Laura
Sotgiu, Giovanni
author_sort Azara, Antonio
collection PubMed
description Background: The aim of the study was to assess radon concentration in schoolrooms in a city located in the midwest of Italy. Methods: A two-phase environmental study was carried out in 19 school buildings of 16 primary, secondary, and tertiary schools. Results: Median (interquartile range—IQR) indoor radon concentration in schoolrooms was 91.6 (45.0–140.3) Bq/m(3). The highest (median 952.8 Bq/m(3)) radon concentration was found in one (3.6%) classroom, located in a building of a primary school whose median concentration was 185 Bq/m(3). Radon concentration was significantly correlated with the number of students and teachers, foundation wall construction material, and with the absence of underground floors. A geopedological survey was performed close to the building with highest radon level, showing the presence of granite and tonalithic granodiorite in the soil. Conclusions: Radon levels should be routinely assessed where individuals live or work. Schools are susceptible targets, because of childhood stay and the long daily stay of occupants. Low-cost interventions, such as implementation of natural air ventilation and school maintenance, can reduce radon levels, limiting individual exposure.
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spelling pubmed-59237912018-05-03 Indoor Radon Exposure in Italian Schools Azara, Antonio Dettori, Marco Castiglia, Paolo Piana, Andrea Durando, Paolo Parodi, Valentina Salis, Giovanni Saderi, Laura Sotgiu, Giovanni Int J Environ Res Public Health Article Background: The aim of the study was to assess radon concentration in schoolrooms in a city located in the midwest of Italy. Methods: A two-phase environmental study was carried out in 19 school buildings of 16 primary, secondary, and tertiary schools. Results: Median (interquartile range—IQR) indoor radon concentration in schoolrooms was 91.6 (45.0–140.3) Bq/m(3). The highest (median 952.8 Bq/m(3)) radon concentration was found in one (3.6%) classroom, located in a building of a primary school whose median concentration was 185 Bq/m(3). Radon concentration was significantly correlated with the number of students and teachers, foundation wall construction material, and with the absence of underground floors. A geopedological survey was performed close to the building with highest radon level, showing the presence of granite and tonalithic granodiorite in the soil. Conclusions: Radon levels should be routinely assessed where individuals live or work. Schools are susceptible targets, because of childhood stay and the long daily stay of occupants. Low-cost interventions, such as implementation of natural air ventilation and school maintenance, can reduce radon levels, limiting individual exposure. MDPI 2018-04-13 2018-04 /pmc/articles/PMC5923791/ /pubmed/29652857 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15040749 Text en © 2018 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
spellingShingle Article
Azara, Antonio
Dettori, Marco
Castiglia, Paolo
Piana, Andrea
Durando, Paolo
Parodi, Valentina
Salis, Giovanni
Saderi, Laura
Sotgiu, Giovanni
Indoor Radon Exposure in Italian Schools
title Indoor Radon Exposure in Italian Schools
title_full Indoor Radon Exposure in Italian Schools
title_fullStr Indoor Radon Exposure in Italian Schools
title_full_unstemmed Indoor Radon Exposure in Italian Schools
title_short Indoor Radon Exposure in Italian Schools
title_sort indoor radon exposure in italian schools
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5923791/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29652857
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15040749
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