The aim of the study is to perform a potential health risk assessment on children in contracting respiratory symptoms\r\ndue to inhaling traffic-generated nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in two typical high-rise naturally-ventilated residential building\r\ndesigns (slab and point block) located close to busy major expressways in a tropical climate. A total of six buildings\r\nwere selected for the study. Ogawa passive samplers (PS-100) were used for NO2 measurements in each building\r\nover a period of 5 weeks during the predominant monsoon seasons. Health risk assessment showed children residing\r\nat the mid floors of the buildings had the highest health risk regardless of their age .i.e. infants, children (1 year and\r\nunder), children (8-10 years)compared to those residents residing at the high and low floors. This was expected\r\nsince the highest concentration of traffic-generated NO2 concentration occurred at the mid floors of the buildings. In\r\na typical floor, children (1 year and under) had the highest followed by children (8-10 years) whilst new born infants\r\nhad the least potential health risk in contracting respiratory symptoms. The reason might could be new born infants\r\nobtain passive immunity from their mothers and in children (1 year and under), the passive immunity fall during this\r\nage period as they are developing their very own immunity against respiratory symptoms. Children (8-10 years) had\r\nthe their potential health risk to respiratory symptoms in between the other two age groups as these children could\r\nhave developed more immunity against respiratory symptoms compared to the children (1 year and under) but less\r\nimmunity compared to infants. Based on the mean overall HR values, children living in a slab block has about 1.27\r\ntimes more risk in contracting a respiratory symptoms due to NO2 inhalation compared to those living in a point block.
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