[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 106 (Monday, June 2, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31488-31489]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-12191]
[[Page 31488]]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
[30Day-08-07BD]
Proposed Data Collections Submitted for Public Comment and
Recommendations
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) publishes a
list of information collection requests under review by the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) in compliance with the Paperwork Reduction
Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35). To request a copy of these requests, call
the CDC Reports Clearance Officer at (404) 639-5960 or send an e-mail
to [email protected]. Send written comments to CDC Desk Officer, Office of
Management and Budget, Washington, DC 20503 or by fax to (202) 395-
6974. Written comments should be received within 30 days of this
notice.
Notice of Correction to the Burden Table
Proposed Project
Building Related Asthma Research in Public Schools--New--National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Background and Brief Description
The mission of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and
Health (NIOSH) is to promote safety and health at work for all people
through research and prevention. The Occupational Safety and Health
Act, Public Law 91-596 (section 20[a] [1]) authorizes the National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to conduct
research to advance the health and safety of workers. NIOSH is
conducting a longitudinal study among teachers and staff in public
schools. The goals of this study are (1) to document the time course of
changes in respiratory health, sick leave, and quality of life in
relation to building remediation for water incursion and dampness
problems; (2) to validate the reporting of building-related lower
respiratory symptoms in school staff with bronchial hyper-
responsiveness by the use of serial spirometry to look for building-
related patterns of airflow variability; and (3) to demonstrate that a
toolkit comprised of a semi-quantitative index for assessing water
damage and signs of moisture in schools, along with a short health
questionnaire, can be used by school personnel to pinpoint specific
problem areas and aid remediation efforts.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sponsored the
Institute of Medicine to make an exhaustive review of the published
literature relating exposures in damp buildings to health consequences.
The committee findings, summarized in Damp Indoor Spaces and Health
(Institute of Medicine of the National Academies of Science 2004),
concluded that sufficient evidence exists for associating the presence
of mold or other agents in damp buildings to nasal and throat symptoms,
cough, wheeze, asthma symptoms in sensitized asthmatics, and
hypersensitivity pneumonitis in susceptible persons. Identification of
specific causal agents for these health outcomes in damp environments
requires more investigation, and more research and demonstration
projects are needed to evaluate interventions in damp buildings.
NIOSH is proposing to conduct an initial cross-sectional
respiratory health survey in three public schools. The study will then
continue with two additional years of longitudinal follow-up, which
will be used to assess respiratory health and environmental conditions
in relation to time and intervention status in the three schools. NIOSH
will study one school with no history of building leaks and good
control of internal moisture sources, one school with previous building
leaks and water damage but with subsequent renovation before the start
of the study, and one school with current building leaks and dampness
problems with renovation scheduled during the study. The questionnaire
will be administered each year by a NIOSH interviewer who will record
the responses directly into a computer. The questionnaire will be
offered to all school employees; we expect no more than 300
participants. It will include sections on the participant's medical
history, work history, and home environment. For participants who no
longer work at the school, a short questionnaire will be administered
by NIOSH staff over the telephone during the second and third years of
the study. Assuming that 10% of the participants will leave the school
during the three-year period, we expect to interview about 30 former
workers.
All participants from the initial cross-sectional survey meeting an
epidemiologic definition of asthma and reporting that the symptoms
improve away from the school will be asked to perform spirometry and a
methacholine challenge test, or if obstructed, a bronchodilator test,
both of which are standard medical tests for asthma; NIOSH anticipates
about 45 respondents for these tests. A maximum of twenty participants
who are positive for either lung function test will be asked to
participate in the serial spirometry study, which will cover three
weeks during the school term and an additional three weeks during the
summer break.
The school nurse will be trained in using a shortened version of
the health questionnaire to all school staff and analyze the results of
the survey. Additionally, facility personnel will be trained in the use
of a semi-quantitative index tool and asked to use the tool to assess
areas in the schools for water damage and signs of moisture during
their routine inspections. Participation in all components of the study
is completely voluntary.
There are no costs to the respondents other than their time. The
total estimated annualized burden hours are 1060.
Estimated Annualized Burden Hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number of Average burden
Type of respondents Forms Number of responses per per response (in
respondents respondent hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Teachers and staff................. NIOSH-Administered 300 1 45/60
Questionnaire.
Former teachers and staff.......... Former Worker 30 1 9/60
Questionnaire (Years
2 & 3 only).
Teachers and staff................. Spirometry, 300 1 15/60
Methacholine
Challenge Test or
Bronchodilator
Administration.
Teachers and staff................. Serial Spirometry.... 20 1 37
[[Page 31489]]
Facility personnel................. Semi-Quantitative 3 1 5
Assessment Sheet.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dated: May 19, 2008.
Maryam I. Daneshvar,
Acting Reports Clearance Officer, Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention.
[FR Doc. E8-12191 Filed 5-30-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P