HIV Insight: Second-Hand Smoke in Four English Prisons: An Air Quality Monitoring Study

BACKGROUND:

To measure levels of indoor pollution in relation to smoking in four English prisons.

METHODS:

TSI SidePak AM510 Personal Aerosol Monitors were used to measure concentrations of particulate matter less than 2.5 μm in diameter (PM2.5) for periods of up to 9 h in selected smoking and non-smoking areas, and personal exposure monitoring of prison staff during a work shift, in four prisons.

RESULTS:

PM2.5 data were collected for average periods of 6.5 h from 48 locations on 25 wing landings where smoking was permitted in cells, on 5 non-smoking wings, 13 prisoner cells, and personal monitoring of 22 staff members. Arithmetic mean PM2.5 concentrations were significantly higher on smoking than non-smoking wing landings (43.9 μg/m(3) and 5.9 μg/m(3) respectively, p < 0.001) and in smoking than non-smoking cells (226.2 μg/m(3) and 17.0 μg/m(3) respectively, p < 0.001). Staff members wore monitors for an average of 4.18 h, during which they were exposed to arithmetic mean PM2.5 concentration of 23.5 μg/m(3).

CONCLUSIONS:

The concentration of PM2.5 pollution in smoking areas of prisons are extremely high. Smoking in prisons therefore represents a significant health hazard to prisoners and staff members.

Below: Concentrations of PM2.5 recorded on smoking locations in all four prisons sampled over the day time periods

Below: Concentrations of PM2.5 recorded on one wing with smoking and voluntary non-smoking spurs

Below: Concentrations of PM2.5 recorded in a single smoker cell

Full article at: http://goo.gl/TcaekU

By: Jayes LR1, Ratschen E2, Murray RL3, Dymond-White S4, Britton J5.

1UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies and Division of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Nottingham, Clinical Sciences Building, Nottingham City Hospital, Nottingham, NG5 1PB, UK. leah.jayes@nottingham.ac.uk.
2UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies and Division of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Nottingham, Clinical Sciences Building, Nottingham City Hospital, Nottingham, NG5 1PB, UK. elena.ratschen@nottingham.ac.uk.
3UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies and Division of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Nottingham, Clinical Sciences Building, Nottingham City Hospital, Nottingham, NG5 1PB, UK. rachael.murray@nottingham.ac.uk.
4National Offender Management Service, Clive house, 70 Petty France, London, SW1H 9EX, UK. suzy.dymond-white@noms.gsi.gov.
5UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies and Division of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Nottingham, Clinical Sciences Building, Nottingham City Hospital, Nottingham, NG5 1PB, UK. j.britton@outlook.com.
BMC Public Health. 2016 Feb 4;16(1):119. doi: 10.1186/s12889-016-2757-y.