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Am I A Victim Of Dampness, Mould And Bacterial Infection?

Question: I’ve always been a fit and healthy individual at the age now of 32! Two years ago I moved from a bedsit, into an apartment (ground floor), during my residence here. I discovered horrible black stained walls, and it seems to be multiplying! Ever since I have lived here, I have noticed a change in my appearance. My skin seems to be dry and flakey. My nose seems to be blocked, my throat feels like something is stuck in it, and I seem to be looking paler in the face and find breathing very difficult. Also I am getting pains in my chest (heart area) and in my back!! Now I am concerned about this! Am I a victim of dampness, mould and bacterial infection?

Many thanks!

Answer: My suggestion is that you consult with your doctor regarding your condition. If possible you may also consider moving out of your current apartment. Damp conditions and mould are known to cause various illnesses. For more information read the answer to a similar question: Could Mold Be Making Us Sick?

Could Mold Be Making Us Sick?

Question: I have a window that leaks and the hardwood floor under both windows is rotten. The property manager said she can’t fix the leak because “all the windows leak”. My boyfriend and I have been really sick and the doctor can’t explain why. Is there a high chance mold could be growing under the floor, that’s making us sick? And do you know what city service in Vancouver I could contact about this situation?

Answer: If there are leaks it’s very likely that there is mold growing on the water damaged materials. It’s difficult to say whether your sickness is due to mold. However, indoor mold and dampness have been associated with ill health. People who are sensitive to mold may experience symptoms such as nasal stuffiness, throat irritation, coughing or wheezing, eye irritation, or, in some cases, skin irritation. Individuals with a history of mold allergies may have more severe reactions. People with weak immune system may get serious infections in their lungs when they are exposed to molds such as Aspergillus fumigatus. Such people are advised to stay away from areas that are likely to have mold.

I am not sure which city service in Vancouver you could contact about this situation but you may want to try their public health department.

Could These Illnesses Be Related To Mold Spores?

Question: My question regards mold spores. Our basement was flooded about 2 weeks ago. Most if not all of the exterior concrete walls and floor were affected as well as an inside wall. Although we have tried to clean everything up as best as we could, we noted a musty smell shortly afterwards. All four family members have been sick with what seems to be various allergic symptoms ever since. Could these illnesses be related to the flood? Could mold spores be the reason and should we have the air quality of our duplex tested?

Answer: It’s possible that your allergic symptoms are linked to dampness in your home. Excessive dampness is a health problem by itself. Indoor dampness also indirectly contributes to health problems by supporting the growth of molds and other microbial agents in addition to initiating the release of chemical emissions from damaged building materials and furnishings. Mold spores are also known to cause allergic reactions in some people.

Research has shown that living in damp homes not only increases the risk of asthma, but also leaves residents with a greater chance of repeated colds and skin allergies. People living in damp houses have been found to require more antibiotics than others and are more likely to suffer from pneumonia, bronchitis or tonsillitis.

You may want to test the air quality in your home to determine the levels of airborne mold spores. I would suggest you hire a professional to assess the situation in your home and give recommendations on remediation.

Dothideales: Cochliobolus Drechsler

Cochliobolus Drechsler; anamorphs Bipolaris Shoemaker, Curvularia Boedijn.

Ascomata perithecial, unilocular, with little or no stromatic development, dark brown, thick-walled. Asci cylindrical to saccate, thick-walled, apparently with two discernible layers but not exhibiting the “jack-in-the-box” discharge of many “bitunicate” ascomycetes, usually 8-spored. Ascospores helically coiled within the ascus, filiform, multiseptate, sometimes surrounded by mucus.

Conidiomata absent. Conidiophores dark brown, more or less erect, thick-walled, the conidia being produced sequentially from a series of conidiogenous loci in the usually knobbly apical cells, the loci appearing as pale dots, conidial dispersal frequently being delayed so that clusters of conidia are visible at the tips of conidiophores. Conidia dark brown, slightly (in Bipolaris) or strongly (in Curvularia) curved, with many thick septa (Bipolaris) or relatively few thin septa (Curvularia).

These fungi are most prominent as plant pathogens, but may occasionally be encountered in industrial situations, from soil and air isolations, and acting as agents of biodeterioration of textiles etc. They are most frequently encountered in the tropics. In addition, there is interest in enzyme, metabolite and toxin production by some species of Cochliobolus and Pyrenophora (q.v.), and at least one isolate is subject to patent restrictions for this reason. Some species are also implicated as disease-causing organisms (McGinnis et al., 1986b)

The fungi are most frequently seen in their anamorphic (conidium-producing) condition, and at one time were merged with Drechslera (the anamorphic state of Pyrenophora) and several other form-genera as Helminthosporium Link. This assemblage was shown to be unnacceptably heterogeneous more than thirty years ago (Hughes, 1953), and the use of that last name since than has been restricted to a small group of saprobic fungi of no industrial interest. The fungi are in most cases more difficult to identify using teleomorphic rather than anamorphic characteristics.

Bipolaris and Curvularia are very similar, and share the same teleomorph genus. Curvularia species have conidia which are strongly curved and have relatively few, thin, septa, while those of Bipolaris in general are less strongly curved, and have larger numbers of thick (disto-) septa (Alcorn, I983a) . The two groups intergrade, and may be merged in the future (Sivanesan, 1987).

Most species produce only the anamorph in culture, and in many cases it is difficult to maintain even conidium production after successive subculturing.

Cochliobolus geniculatus Nelson; anamorph Curvularia geniculata (Tracy & Earle) Boedijn.

Conidia are 18-37 x 8-14µm in size in culture (often rather longer on natural substrata), strongly curved, and almost always 4-septate, with the end cells paler. It is heterothallic. The anamorphic state was formerly known as Helminthosporium geniculatum Tracy & Earle.

Cochliobolus lunatus Nelson & Haasis; anamorph Curvularia lunata (Wakker) Boedijn.

Conidia are 20-32 x 9-15µm in size, strongly curved, 3-septate, with the central cells dark brown and the apical ones much paler. It also is heterothallic.

Dothideales: Botryosphaeria

Botryosphaeria Ces. & de Not.; anamorphs Diplodia Fr., Dothiorella Sacc., Lasiodiplodia Ellis & Everh., Sphaeropsis Sacc. etc. Botrosphaeria rhodina (Berk. & Curtis) von Arx is frequently encountered in its anamorphic state, to which the name Lasiodiplodia theobromae (Pat.) Griffon & Maublanc (syn. Botryodiplodia theobromae Pat.) is applied. B. rhodina is best-known as a ubiquitous plant pathogen in the tropics, and it frequently causes storage rots of fruits and vegetables (Brackett, 1991). Further information on the fungus may be found in Punithalingam (1976), Domsch et al. (1980) and Pitt & Hocking (1985a).

Salmonella food poisoning and symptoms

Salmonella food poisoning has been a growing concern in recent news. It has frequently lead to recalls of beef, salads and organic products and, even peanut butter products. Salmonella food poisoning occurs when one eats raw or undercooked foods such meat, poultry, eggs or egg products. Properly cooked food can get contaminated with Salmonella if […]

Legionella pneumophila – Guidelines for Laboratory Interpretation

Legionella pneumophila is a Gram negative, aerobic bacteria that is characterized as an opportunistic pathogen. It is the cause of Legionnaires’ Disease, a severe form of pneumonia and, it is the cause of Pontiac fever, a non-pneumonic form of L. pneumophila infection. Legionella spp.’s mode of transmission is through aerosols or aspiration of contaminated water. The Public Health […]

The Indoor Mold Is An Early Warning Device

The mold (or mould, in the Queen’s English) has been the victim of a bad press. Mention the word and it conjures up an image of something rotting or in the process of decomposition. And yet, were it not for the mold that inspired the discovery of penicillin millions of lives would have been lost. […]