Japanese Society for Infection Prevention and Control-Online Journal

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Maintenance Methods for Ventilation Equipment to Control Airborne-Infection in Healthcare and Welfare Facilities

Yo ISHIGAKI¹⁾, Naohisa FUJITA²⁾, Tatsuo KATO³⁾, Norio ASAI²⁾, Akira SAITO⁴⁾, Hiroko KITAMURA⁵⁾⁶⁾, Shinji YOKOGAWA¹⁾, Kan SHIMAZAKI⁷⁾ and Ryosuke NAKAJIMA⁸⁾
¹⁾University of Electro-Communications, ²⁾Kyoto Prefectural Institute of Public Health and Environmental Sciences, ³⁾Shinwa Corporation, ⁴⁾Miyagi Anti-Tuberculosis Association, ⁵⁾University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Japan, ⁶⁾National Institute of Radiological Sciences, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, ⁷⁾Kindai University, ⁸⁾Keio University

This study developed a checklist for aerosol infection control measures and conducted on-site inspections in 3,337 rooms across 126 healthcare and welfare facilities. Results indicated that 28% of the rooms exhibited mechanical ventilation issues, primarily due to insufficient cleaning (39%) and deactivated systems (24%). Intervention experiments were carried out in 36 rooms across 3 facilities with known ventilation deficiencies. While cleaning ventilation fans alone had a limited impact, removing debris from the insect-proof mesh on outdoor exhaust louvers significantly enhanced airflow (p<0.001). This intervention increased the measured-to-designed airflow by an average of 37 percentage points. These findings emphasize the critical role of monitoring the actual ventilation rates and regularly maintaining outdoor exhaust louvers to ensure effective indoor air quality management in public buildings.

Key words：air conditioning system, airborne precaution, air change rate, healthcare facility, nursing home

e-mail: ishigaki＠uec.ac.jp

Received: August 5, 2024
Accepted: March 12, 2025

40 (4)：168─174,2025