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Ultraviolet zapping: The cure for `sick office` syndrome
Paris, Nov 27: Germ-killing ultraviolet light installed in ventilation systems can slash sickness problems among office workers, according to a study published in Saturday`s issue of the lancet.
Paris, Nov 27: Germ-killing ultraviolet light installed in ventilation systems can slash sickness problems among office workers, according to a study published in Saturday's issue of the lancet.
Doctors from the Montreal Chest Institute in Canada installed ultraviolet (UV) lights to irradiate drip pans and cooling coils in the air-conditioning systems in three local office buildings, killing 99 per cent of microbes before the air was recycled back into the building.
The device was turned off for 12 weeks, then switched on for four weeks, and so on, in cycles totalling 48 weeks. During this time, researchers asked employees about their state of health, and garnered reliable data from 771 people. Among workers who had complained of occasional work-related illness such as irritation of the eyes, nose and throat, muscle aches, coughing, sneezing or wheezing, the UV resulted in reduction of up to 50 per cent in their symptoms. Those who benefitted most were people who had never smoked.
Lead researcher Dick Menzies said the cost of ultraviolet irradiation, while quite high initially, would be more than counterbalanced by savings from lower absenteeism.
According to his calculations, a typical North American office block with 1,000 workers would cost $52,000 to equip initially, and $14,000 annually in electricity and maintenance costs.
Per worker, that amounts to an upfront investment of USD 52 and USD 14 per year in annual operating costs. These figures "compare favourably with estimated yearly losses from absence caused by building-related sickness," he said.
Bureau Report
The device was turned off for 12 weeks, then switched on for four weeks, and so on, in cycles totalling 48 weeks. During this time, researchers asked employees about their state of health, and garnered reliable data from 771 people. Among workers who had complained of occasional work-related illness such as irritation of the eyes, nose and throat, muscle aches, coughing, sneezing or wheezing, the UV resulted in reduction of up to 50 per cent in their symptoms. Those who benefitted most were people who had never smoked.
Lead researcher Dick Menzies said the cost of ultraviolet irradiation, while quite high initially, would be more than counterbalanced by savings from lower absenteeism.
According to his calculations, a typical North American office block with 1,000 workers would cost $52,000 to equip initially, and $14,000 annually in electricity and maintenance costs.
Per worker, that amounts to an upfront investment of USD 52 and USD 14 per year in annual operating costs. These figures "compare favourably with estimated yearly losses from absence caused by building-related sickness," he said.
Bureau Report