Relationships between school indoor toluene and respiratory symptoms in Italian children

Aim: to assess how indoor toluene can affect respiratory health in schoolchildren. Methods: Symptoms in the last week and related risk factors were assessed through questionnaire in 1718 children (mean age 10yrs, 50.9% males) of seven Italian cities. Measurements of pollutants were performed in 130 classrooms (44 schools). Toluene was measured by Radiello passive diffusive samplers. Results: The levels of indoor toluene were relatively low: median concentration was 3.10 µg/m 3 . Prevalences of dry cough and nasal problems (including runny nose, dry nose) were respectively 25% (12% at school) and 72.8% (49% at school). Multiple logistic regression accounted for centre, sex, age, diagnosis of asthma or rhinitis, passive smoking at home, asthma/rhinitis familiarity, levels of indoor particulate and carbon dioxide, indicated toluene was associated with higher risk of any dry cough (OR for log unit 1.34, 95%CI 1.16-1.55) and dry cough at school (OR 1.45, 1.18-1.79), any nasal problems (OR 1.17, 1.03-1.32) and nasal problems at school (OR 1.18, 1.05-1.33). Conclusion: Although toluene levels in classrooms were relatively low, the exposure to this volatile organic compound seems to be a risk factor for respiratory health of schoolchildren. The project was supported by the National Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (CCM), National Health Service, Ministry of Health.