Culturable mold in indoor air and its association with moisture-related problems and asthma and allergy among Swedish children

In a nested case-control study with 198 children with asthmatic and allergic symptoms (cases) and 202 healthy controls in Varmland. Sweden, we have investigated the relationship between mold spore exposure (mean colony-forming unit) indoor and (i) different indexes of moldy odor indoor (observed by professional inspectors and reported by parents), (ii) visible signs of dampness in the homes of the children (observed and reported), and (iii) doctor-diagnosed asthma/allergy in children. No association was found between the spore concentration indoor and moldy odor and signs of visible dampness in the homes. When a semi-quantitative method in distinguishing between moldy houses or non-moldy houses was used, there were no significant differences between the observed indexes of moldy odor or visible signs of dampness (both observed and reported). No association could be found between the spore concentration in indoor air and asthma/allergy in the children.