Indoor formaldehyde levels in residences, schools, and offices in China in the past 30 years: A systematic review

Exposure to formaldehyde causes a variety of adverse health outcomes, while the distributions of indoor formaldehyde in different building types are still not clear in China. In this study, based on the systematic review of previously published data and Monte Carlo simulation, we assessed geographical and temporal distributions of indoor formaldehyde concentrations in residences, schools, and offices across China. A total of 397 studies covered 34 provincial-level regions since 1986 were collected. The results showed that indoor formaldehyde concentrations in residences, schools, and offices in nationwide were decreasing over years due to the publishment of indoor air quality standards since 2002. During 2011 to 2015, the median concentrations of indoor formaldehyde in newly renovated residences, schools, and offices were 153 μg/m3 , 163 μg/m3 , and 94 μg/m3 , with an exceeding rate of 82%, 46%, and 91% considering a standard threshold of 100 μg/m3 at that time, while the exceeding rate was less than 5% for buildings that were renovated beyond one year. Our findings release the temporal trends and geographic distributions of indoor formaldehyde concentrations in residences, schools, and offices in China in the past 30 years, and provide basic data for the comprehensive evaluation of disease burden attributable to indoor formaldehyde exposure.