Proposta de sistemática para estudo da presença de fungos em elementos de vedação vertical de edificações: estudo de caso em ambiente hospitalar

Abstract

Fungus colonization and growth in building materials results in molds, corrosion, fouling, cracking, peeling, among others. In human beings, species of fungi found in the built environment can cause diseases. Therefore, this work aims to present a systematization to investigate the presence of fungi in buildings walls, which was carried out in a case study on a hospital environment (due to the consequences on this environment). In this context, this paper presents a detailed method to sample and analyse construction materials of the layers on masonry walls, performing a microbiological analysis of the fungi genera found in a study case and the risk they offer to the built environment. Furthermore, a survey was carried out of the environmental conditions and this information was used to estimate fungal growth by numerical prediction models. It was found that the ink layer had one of the greatest number of fungal colonies, since it is exposed to bioaerosols in the inside environment, which may contain a range of fungal spores; the sample point on the most humid and most exposed wall was the most infected by fungi colonies, including two of the three most dangerous genera to buildings and its occupants (Arpergillus and Cladosporium). Fungal growth prediction models showed a larger growth on the surface of building materials exposed to outside weather; on the inside environment, as on the inside of masonry materials, the growth was lesser or negligible. This paper contributed to the knowledge about the fungal presence in the built environment, mostly in healthcare facilities.