Published: Feb. 5, 2008 at 5:15 PM

BERKELEY, Calif., Feb. 5 (UPI) -- Increased levels of the pollutant ozone in outdoor air may play a role in sick building syndrome, U.S. researchers found.

The researchers also discovered building-related symptoms such as upper respiratory and skin irritation, headaches and fatigue, increased when higher outdoor ozone levels were combined with the use of a polyester or other synthetic filters. Fewer symptoms were reported in buildings with high ozone and fiberglass filters or in buildings using polyester/synthetic filters but had lower outdoor ozone levels.

"The study estimated that removing both risk factors -- higher ozone in outdoor air and polyester/synthetic filters -- could reduce BRS by 26 percent to 62 percent," study researcher Michael Apte of the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory said in a statement. The results are to be published in the journal Indoor Air.

The researchers compared data including worker health and environmental conditions from a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency study of 100 office buildings -- the Building Assessment Survey and Evaluation -- to ozone data collected by air quality monitoring stations near the buildings.

The researchers found not only BRS went up as outdoor ozone concentrations increased, so did indoor concentrations of formaldehyde, acetaldehyde and organic acids.

 http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Health/2008/02/05/sick_building_linked_to_ozone_air_filters/2578/

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