Connecticut researchers have found that the mold count from a live Christmas tree rose to five times the normal level two weeks after the tree was brought indoors, and that can prove problematic for people with mold allergies. Their research was presented this week at the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology annual meeting, in Dallas.

“Christmas trees are another possible source of mold exposure during the holiday season,” said study co-author Philip Hemmers, an allergist and immunologist with St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Bridgeport, Conn. “Mold allergies peak in the fall, and we see a second peak with a lot of our mold-sensitive patients during the holiday season. Our finding correlates with this second peak of mold sensitivity.”

The researchers studied the mold growth of a live Christmas tree in a house in Connecticut. Mold reproduce by releasing spores into the air, so after the live Christmas tree was brought inside the house and decorated, the researchers measured mold spore counts. These counts were taken 12 times over a two-week period between Dec. 24 and Jan. 6. The researchers did not assess the types of mold or whether these molds triggered allergic symptoms in people living in the house.

Mold removal falls under the scope of the larger field of mold remediation. Usually, mold remediation entails complete elimination of mold from indoor areas, such as rooms in condominiums and offices. Mold growth is a common problem that is covered in occupational health. Mold usually grows in moist environments, such as rooms that do not have adequate ventilation and leave moisture trapped within the room’s structure. Mold can be dangerous to people who are allergic to it or have some kind of physical reaction to the presence of mold spores in the air. Some people develop fungus infections on their skin, or have asthmatic attacks from inhaling the mold spores. It is very important then to remove mold from a contaminated room.

Professional remediation personnel can act to diagnose if you have a mold problem in your indoor environment, and can recommend ways to undertake mold removal for you. One way is mold removal with the use of an ozone machine.

You may know an ozone machine by another name, which is Ozone Generator. The two names refer to one and the same machine which theoretically functions via the ozone blasting technique. Ozone blasting (also called High Ozone shock treatment) is supposed to be a cheap yet effective way to undertake mold removal in indoor places

Newswise — Researchers are presenting nearly 350 abstracts on investigational findings in the diagnosis and treatment of allergic diseases at the ACAAI Annual Meeting in Dallas, Nov. 8-14. Following are highlights of some key studies on allergic rhinitis.

“Nasal Allergies Adversely Affect Sleep and Productivity in Children.” (Abstract #1: Nov. 11 at 1:00 p.m.) – Jennifer M. Derebery, M.D., Los Angeles, et al – Investigators conducted a national telephone survey (Pediatric Allergies in America) of the parents of 500 children (4 to 17 years) with current nasal allergies. Their findings include: approximately one third of parents of children with nasal allergies reported that their children had difficulty getting to sleep (32 percent), staying asleep (26 percent), or experiencing a good night sleep (29 percent) compared with rates of 12 percent, 8 percent and 12 percent reported by parents of children without nasal allergies, respectively. Forty percent of parents reported that nasal allergies interfered with their child’s performance at school or daycare.

“Children with Nasal Allergies Experience Bothersome Symptoms That Affect Daily Activities.” (Abstract #10: Nov. 11 at 2:15 p.m.) – Michael S. Blaiss, M.D., Memphis, et al – In the national telephone survey (Pediatric Allergies in America) of the parents of 500 children (4 to 17 years) with current nasal allergies, one third of parents reported that their children cannot tolerate their nasal allergies.

According to the survey results, 55 percent of allergists, 38 percent of pediatricians, 27 percent of family practice physicians, and 26 percent of ear, nose and throat specialists agreed that a pediatric patient experiencing a nasal allergy attack cannot tolerate symptoms without relief. Parents reported a 29 percent decrease in productivity of their children with nasal allergies on days when symptoms were at their worst.

“Rhinitis Outcomes Questionnaire in Allergic Rhinitis and Immunotherapy Patients: A Five-Year Retrospective Analysis and Web-based Implementation.” (Abstract #12: Nov. 11 at 1:45 p.m.) – Dan A. Dalan, M.D., Fargo, N.D. – This report is the first long term follow up of 1657 new allergic rhinitis (AR) and 116 immunotherapy (IT) patients using the rhinitis outcomes questionnaire and its use as a Web-based tool. Authors conclude that practice guidelines use in the treatment of AR and IT patients showed significant improvement and sustained health outcomes over five years. They use this validated electronic rhinitis outcomes questionnaire to record short and long-term improved outcomes, important in clinical patient care, research and pay for performance documentation.

“Mold Allergy and Live Christmas Trees.” (Abstract #P59: Nov. 10-11, Noon – 1:00 p.m., Clinical Connect Program) – William J. Rockwell, M.D., Bridgeport, Conn., et al – The allergic symptoms associated with decorating the home during the Christmas season are often attributed to the dust mites on ornaments and lights, the scent of the live Christmas tree and the mold that grows on the tree note the authors. Investigators measured mold counts 12 times over a two-week period between Dec. 24 and Jan. 6, after the live Christmas tree was brought inside and decorated. Spore counts rose from a baseline average of 800 spores/m3 to a maximum of 5,000 spores/mc by day 14 when the tree was taken down. This study demonstrates that mold-sensitive patients may experience allergic symptoms due to an increasing mold spore exposure from having a live Christmas tree in the home.

“Economic Impact of Allergic Rhinitis to Managed Care: A Retrospective Claims Analysis.” (Abstract #P234: Nov. 10-11, Noon – 1:00 p.m.) – Anand Dalall, Ph.D., MBA, Research Triangle Park, N.C., et al – In a study of 301,000 insured managed care enrollees with rhinitis, the burden of rhinitis to the health plan in terms of rhinitis-related total medical cost were $319 and total prescription costs were $338 for total cost of $657 per patient. Antihistamine (40 percent) was the most common class of medication utilized, followed by nasal steroids (21 percent). 37 percent of patients utilized more than one class of prescription rhinitis medication to control various symptoms. Authors conclude that medications that can treat more than one symptom effectively may reduce managed care costs.

About the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology
The ACAAI is a professional medical organization headquartered in Arlington Heights, Ill., that promotes excellence in the practice of the subspecialty of allergy and immunology. The College, comprising more than 5,000 allergists-immunologists and related health care professionals, fosters a culture of collaboration and congeniality in which its members work together and with others toward the common goals of patient care, education, advocacy and research.

First, it was rats. Now, the county agency that sets property values is plagued with leaks, mold and flooding.

The problem is so bad that the Property Appraiser’s Office likely will have to move out of the Governmental Center for two years while the roof is torn off and replaced. The cost to taxpayers: at least $2.5 million, and it could be much more expensive because officials don’t know the price of rebuilding the office after the new roof is installed.

Despite repeated repairs, water from a nearby alley was 4 inches deep in parts of the office after rain in late October. Sections of the roof have leaked so badly that computers have died and plastic trays with funnels now line the ceiling to collect water and drain it into buckets. Potential mold has been discovered in the walls and ceiling.

Since the beginning of this school year, at least five schools in southern Beaufort County have reported problems with water leaking, according to school officials, teachers and district officials. Those schools include Hilton Head Island High, Hilton Head Island International Baccalaureate Elementary, M.C. Riley Elementary, Bluffton High and Daufuskie Elementary.

Students were pulled out of Daufuskie Elementary for at least six days earlier this school year, and parents have removed students from at least two other district schools due to concerns about compromised air quality.

District spokesman John Williams said water problems and air quality concerns are constant challenges for Beaufort County’s 28 schools. Even in one of the district’s newest schools — the three-year-old Bluffton High — problems related to leaking water have been reported this year.

“Given our environment, which includes low-lying ground and very damp conditions, indoor air quality is an ongoing challenge,” Williams said. “But, we do not take concerns lightly and we’ve been very proactive in addressing them. The health of school workers, staff, students and visitors is critically important to us.”

The wall outside the bedroom where Ezekiel Mark Bullis spent all five weeks of his brief life in 2001 still weeps black mold.

Streaks of peppery mold seep from underneath slats of siding on the two-story-high wall at The Overlook at Pantano apartment complex, 1800 S. Pantano Road, a 443-unit complex south of East 22nd Street.

The official cause of Ezekiel’s death is listed as sudden infant death syndrome, but his grandmother blames the mold that infested her apartment.

“At first I thought, ‘Mold can’t do this to a person,’” Rachael Bullis said. “But we went and did research, and we found that it can. That’s when we started putting two and two together.”

Several environmental health studies planned at the University of Cincinnati will benefit from $1.6 million in grants from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Tiina Reponen, a professor of environmental health, received more than $785,000 to analyze the health effects of mold exposure in children under age 6. Her goal is to find a solution to maladies cause by mold, including asthma and allergic rhinitis.

A homeowner who was evacuated from his San Antonio Housing Authority home because of mold returned to his home to find all his things had been stolen.

Pedro De Los Santos says SAHA is to blame for the burglary, because officials didn’t keep their promise to keep his home safe.

Los Santos bought his home on Precious Street through a government-funded program in December but was only able to live in it for two months. Mold caused his son to get sick and forced the family to move out.

“He’s still seeing doctors, but you know, we don’t know what could happen in five years, you know. We don’t know what could happen,” De Los Santos said.

SAHA is paying for an apartment for De Los Santos and his family, but he returned to the home recently to find it had been burglarized.

ROCKFORD, Ill. — It is common for mold problems to appear five to six weeks after a flood, but Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) officials say you can take steps to combat mold growth and its potential to cause serious health problems and structural damage to homes.

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Here are some common symptoms of black mold exposure that are often mistaken.
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Mr. Davidson has served as the Company’s Chief Operating Officer since August 2005 and its President since June 2006. From April 2004 to July 2005, Mr. Davidson served as Chief Financial Officer. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Davidson served in leadership positions with large and small public and private companies.

“American Mold Guard appreciates Tom’s many contributions to the company and wish him well,” said Frank Brandenberg, Chairman of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee of the Board of Directors. “Given the unique issues that the company faces in the current new construction market, the Board concluded that a change in focus and management direction was in the best interest of the company,” added Mr. Brandenberg.

Mr. Brandenberg further stated, “The Board of Directors looks forward to continuing to work with Mr. Davidson and the other members of the company’s management team as we move forward in our efforts to grow the business.”

For more information on the terms of Mr. Blakeley’s separation arrangements, see AMG’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed concurrently with the issuance of this release.

More than 80 students, some wearing paper face masks, held a demonstration outside of Westview High School this morning to protest a mold problem they believe is making them sick.The protest falls just days after the parents of a Westview student filed a lawsuit against the school system, Superintendent Richard Barber, H&M Construction Inc., air quality professionals and Weakley County following their son’s illness. The parents believe his illness is connected to mold he was exposed to while attending school.

York County officials don’t know how moisture got into a York County Courthouse file room, but getting rid of the resulting mold will cost the county nearly $40,000.Mold was discovered on some York County Common Pleas Court files in mid-August, Assistant County Manager David Larson said. The company called to investigate the problem, WPC Engineering, Environmental and Construction Services, found the plaster walls in the auxiliary civil court file room were damp.

The County Council on Monday authorized the money needed to remove mold from the 93-year-old building and store files in a portable trailer while the area is cleaned. Removing the files, sanitizing and cutting off the water source are expected to take about two to three weeks, and Larson said work could start as early as Monday.

No employees have reported health problems associated with the mold, but the county isn’t taking any chances. “We can’t have people in that area,” County Manager Jim Baker said. “The contaminated section is preventing employees and others from accessing files.”

So when we saw what was underneath the cabinets and walls of our kitchen, CD and I had a profound ‘Holy Crap!’ moment. 80-year-old dust and mildew is not unexpected, but then again - who can be prepared for what we found?

After locking our son in his hermetically sealed environment with filters going an mach speeds, we consulted the Internet and our family doctor about what to do.

Short of doing a complete gut removal of the room (which we did with the back room of the house but couldn’t afford to do again) here’s the consensus that we followed.

Paperless drywall is a fascinating product. Although traditional drywall with paper facing is fine in many instances, paperless drywall solves a few pesky problems that paper-faced drywall has had for years.

Traditional drywall has a firm gypsum core that is wrapped with special paper. Not all drywall has the same paper facing. Some drywall products have colored paper facing (blue or green) that inhibits the absorption of water that might soften the gypsum core.

Paperless drywall is covered front and back with fiberglass that is highly water resistant. It also comes with a moisture-resistant gypsum core. Not all traditional drywall has this type of core.

Paperless drywall was created to help minimize the spread of mold in homes. Is it moldproof? Absolutely not. It is mold-resistant, as the fiberglass mat that replaces the paper is not a food source for many common molds. Some molds feed on the paper facing of traditional drywall if the drywall becomes damp and stays moist.

The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation is without its home because the Lawton building is full of mold.  So, OSBI is working out of a temporary office.  The mold problem was discovered after routine maintenance was being done on its building just off of East Gore Blvd.  New carpet and paint was being installed when it was discovered.  It was so bad, the employees weren’t allowed inside the building, and no one is permitted to enter without a respirator.

“We didn’t realize the seriousness of it until we started moving away the heavy furniture and some of the laboratory cabinetry that was attached to the walls,” said Richard Goss, an OSBI inspector.  He says an expert on mold said structural deficiencies and lab equipment generated too much humidity and causing the problem.

Their temporary office is in a building at the Lawton Police Department.  At their mold infested building, new pipes are being laid to keep the drainage flowing smoothly so the structure won’t absorb so much water keeping the mold away and the employees in their own building.  A slope will also have to be built along the sides of the walls to create a runoff so it won’t push water into the building.

On Sept. 14, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association said that controllers of the Detroit Metro Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW) filed a lawsuit in Wayne County Circuit Court, alleging that toxic black mold has affected controllers’ health. According to the complaint, the problem goes back three years; controllers say black mold has caused sickness and many of them have haven’t been able to work–continuing to suffer breathing and other serious health problems. To refresh your memory of several health-related complaints made by NATCA facility representatives, refer to CharterX’s exclusive  May report, “Deadly Fumes in ATC Towers: FAA Promises CO Detectors.”

Allegations made in the suit contend that contractors hired by the Federal Aviation Administration, which employ air traffic controllers, failed to properly remove mold, provide a work plan for effective removal of mold contamination, have a certified industrial hygienist present during remediation, conduct proper testing, including clearance testing, and to advise the FAA of the deficiencies in their efforts to remediate the mold. Further, the complaint contends that mold remains in the building today. According to FAA statements, the agency contends mold has been removed.

Parties named in the suit are MIS Corporation, Coach’s Catastrophic Cleaning & Restoration Services Inc., Tillotson Environmental Occupational Consulting, Clayton Environmental Consultants, Bureau Veritas North American Inc., Jacobs Facilities Inc., Safe Technology Inc. and Applied Environmental Inc. Law firms of Dodd B. Fisher, PLC, of Grosse Pointe, Mich., and Mancini, Schreuder, Kline & Conrad, P.C., of Warren, Mich., are representing the air traffic controllers.

According to Vince Sugent, Detroit tower NATCA facility representative, the problem began in January 2005, when efforts to remove mold and correct a moisture problem in the tower weren’t handled properly. Controllers allege that contractors’ actions in wiping down drywall with soap and water–not utilizing safety precautions to protect controllers during remediation and executing other work plans outside the scope of industry standards, protocols and guidelines–haven’t corrected the problems.

MOSS POINT — Despite clean-up efforts, some Jackson County homes still have mold festering behind walls and under leaky windows.

“It’s growing. It’s in the vents and the walls. It makes you itch all over,” said Perry Fountain.

Though she scrubbed her floors and walls with bleach over and over, her garage walls became coated from the inside out with black mold after Hurricane Katrina flooded her Moss Point home.

Mold can grow anywhere that is damp and warm and can feed on wood, wallboard, upholstery and dust.

After hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the Center for Disease Control sponsored a study on mold prevention strategies and the possible health effects of mold contamination.

The study, released in July 2006, said that the amount of flooding caused by the storms made a massive mold contamination a certainty, and residents were told to air out their homes and clean the possibly infected areas with bleach.

TAMPA - Dozens of people, expecting the typical long waits and aggravation, showed up this morning for traffic court at the Floriland Business Center. For some, the closure of the facility last week due to a mold problem added to their aggravation. For others, it was a relief.

Douglas Bakke, an official with the Hillsborough County Clerk of Courts, said 25 to 35 people showed up for their 9 a.m. court hearing.

“They’re tickled pink when we tell them court is canceled,” Bakke said.

Another 75 people had shown up by about 9:30 a.m. expecting to set a court date or pay a fine. They were directed to satellite offices in Ruskin, Brandon and Plant City or to a temporary facility set up at the George Edgecomb Courthouse in downtown Tampa.

Court dates in Plant City will proceed as normal. The majority of Hillsborough County Traffic Court dates that are scheduled at Floriland are canceled for this week, Bakke said.

The mold found in the courtrooms last week will take a minimum of 30 days to clean up, Bakke said.

CHICAGO, Sept. 3 (UPI) — Last month’s downpour in the Midwest has triggered an increase in mold spores but dampened the U.S. pollen count — at least temporarily.

The hay fever season, which begins around Aug. 15 and ends with the first frost, is expected to peak this week, easing the suffering of millions afflicted with seasonal allergic rhinitis, better known as hay fever, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Monday.

In Chicago, recent rains increased the number of mold spores per cubic meter to a “very high” threshold Friday of 50,000, down from an Aug. 22 high for the season of 62,766 spores, the Sun-Times reported.

The rain kept pollen from floating in the air but helped boost the growth of weeds, which would spread pollen grains if hot, dry, windy air returns, said Dr. Joseph Leija, an allergist in Melrose Park, Ill.

The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology advises hay fever sufferers to keep windows closed and use air conditioning, minimize outdoor activity, shower after being outdoors and avoid places where ragweed thrives, such as roadsides, empty lots and edges of woods.