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Portuguese primary schools: dust filter samples, a simple tool for assessing bacterial contamination indoors?

2025-06Conference paper Open access
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datacite.subject.sdg03:Saúde de Qualidade
dc.contributor.authorPena, Pedro
dc.contributor.authorCervantes, Renata
dc.contributor.authorViegas, Carla
dc.date.accessioned2025-09-04T11:14:51Z
dc.date.available2025-09-04T11:14:51Z
dc.date.issued2025-06
dc.descriptionH&TRC authors gratefully acknowledge FCT/MCTES UIDP/05608/2020, and UIDB/05608/2020. This work is also supported by national funds through FCT/MCTES/FSE/UE, 2023.01366.BD; and Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa, national support through IPL/2022/InChildhealth/BI/12M; and for funding the projects IPL/IDI&CA2024/WWTPSValor_ESTeSL and IPL/IDI&CA2024/MycoSOS_ESTeSL. This project was partly funded by an EU Horizon 2021 grant no. 101056883 and co-funding from the author’s organizations and/or Ministries. Funding from Swiss SERI grant 22.00324, UKRI grant 10040524, and NHMRC grant APP2017786 and APP2008813. Views expressed are of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of EU, Swiss SERI, UKRI, or NHMRC.
dc.description.abstractThis study aimed to assess seasonal variations in bacterial contamination across school settings (canteen, classroom, gymnasium, library, and toilet) with dust filter samples, to identify high-risk areas and inform targeted hygiene practices and public health strategies in educational environments. Dust filter samples were collected in 10 schools within the Metropolitan Lisbon Area. Sterilized coffee filters were placed inside the disinfected vacuum tube for sampling. Samples were collected in the warm (N=33) and cold seasons (N=34), from canteens (N=14), classrooms (N=33), gymnasium (N=9), library (N=9), and toilets (N=2). Settled dust was collected from shelves, plinths, and floors around students' desks and near the door in all sampled rooms. After extraction with NaCl+Tween 80 solution, samples were inoculated onto Tryptic Soy Agar (TSA), Violet Red Bile Agar (VRBA), and MacConkey Agar (MAC). Results from the cold season indicate that gymnasiums (TSA = 1.8×10⁴ CFU/m²) and libraries (VRBA = 1.4×10⁴ CFU/m²) were contamination hotspots, although libraries showed lower contamination on TSA (1.8×10³ CFU/m²). Canteens (2.3×10³ CFU/m²) exhibited elevated Gram-negative bacteria, while classrooms had the lowest contamination on VRBA (5.0×10² CFU/m²). For the warm season, canteens showed higher contamination on TSA (6.5×10³ CFU/m²), while classrooms showed higher contamination on VRBA (4.5×10³ CFU/m²). For MAC results, gymnasiums showed higher contamination (2.0×10³ CFU/m²). Seasonal and spatial differences significantly influence microbial air contamination in schools. Gymnasiums and classrooms are potentially critical hotspots, particularly for MAC and TSA contamination results. TSA contamination results showed high variability (e.g., SD = 23,645 in canteens), suggesting fluctuating total bacterial contamination, likely tied to occupancy or cleaning schedules. These findings emphasize the need for seasonally adaptive hygiene protocols and focused monitoring in high-traffic areas to mitigate exposure risks.eng
dc.identifier.citationPena P, Cervantes R, Viegas C. Portuguese primary schools: dust filter samples, a simple tool for assessing bacterial contamination indoors? In: AIRMON 2025 – 11th International Symposium on Modern Principles for Air Monitoring and Biomonitoring, Loen (Norway), June 15-19, 2025.
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10400.21/22111
dc.language.isoeng
dc.peerreviewedyes
dc.relation.hasversionhttps://stami.no/en/airmon-2025/
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
dc.subjectOccupational health
dc.subjectIndoor contamination
dc.subjectExposure contamination
dc.subjectElementary school
dc.subjectChildren
dc.subjectPortugal
dc.subjectFCT_UIDP/05608/2020
dc.subjectFCT_UIDB/05608/2020
dc.subjectIPL/2022/InChildhealth/BI/12M
dc.subjectIPL/IDI&CA2024/WWTPSValor_ESTeSL
dc.subjectIPL/IDI&CA2024/MycoSOS_ESTeSL
dc.titlePortuguese primary schools: dust filter samples, a simple tool for assessing bacterial contamination indoors?eng
dc.typeconference paper
dspace.entity.typePublication
oaire.citation.conferenceDate2025-06
oaire.citation.conferencePlaceLoen, Noruega
oaire.versionhttp://purl.org/coar/version/c_970fb48d4fbd8a85
person.familyNamePena
person.familyNameWellenkamp de Carvalho Freire de Cervantes
person.familyNameViegas
person.givenNamePedro
person.givenNameRenata
person.givenNameCarla
person.identifier2041141
person.identifier.ciencia-idD71B-656F-BB9D
person.identifier.ciencia-id6018-3CC9-B640
person.identifier.ciencia-idEE1E-C639-D70F
person.identifier.orcid0000-0002-2188-9318
person.identifier.orcid0000-0001-5990-4168
person.identifier.orcid0000-0002-1545-6479
person.identifier.ridB-7217-2013
person.identifier.scopus-author-id57222077827
person.identifier.scopus-author-id55443609700
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relation.isAuthorOfPublication28678633-1f6a-4b79-8150-12a857f4a531
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relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscoveryf830ce64-7497-4ca0-bdc9-d1891a740a61

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