You are here:
UNDERSTANDING AND APPLYING THE ENVIRONMENTAL RELATIVE MOLDINESS INDEX (ERMI)SM IN DOD FACILITIES
Citation:
VESPER, S. J. UNDERSTANDING AND APPLYING THE ENVIRONMENTAL RELATIVE MOLDINESS INDEX (ERMI)SM IN DOD FACILITIES. Presented at 2007 DoD 10th Annual Force Health Protection, Louisville, KY, August 07 - 10, 2007.
Impact/Purpose:
1. Develop and publish a standard method or guidance document for QPCR analysis of microorganisms in environmental samples (air and water filtrates and dust).a standard method or guidance document for QPCR analysis of microorganisms in environmental samples (air and water filtrates and dust). Publication will involve a consensus standards organization. 2. Use QPCR methods to monitor childhood exposures to mold as a part of field studies, in order to establish whether a relationship exists between molds encountered in indoor environments and asthma-related health problems.
Description:
Mold burdens in the indoor environment are a growing concern for the Department of Defense and other government agencies, as well as, the general public. Most recently mold in Walter Reed outpatient facilities became a significant issue. Yet there has been no standardized, objective method to quantify the mold burden indoors. This situation has now been corrected with the development of a DNA-based method of mold analysis called Mold Specific Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (MSQPCR) (US Patent No.6,387,652). Using this technology to measure 36 indicator mold species in dust allowed for the development of a scale of relative mold burdens indoors called the Environmental Relative Moldiness Index (ERMI). This scale may be a useful tool to evaluate the mold levels in DOD facilities.