Clothing as a Carrier: The Retention of Mold Spores and its Impact on Human Infection

icWendichen Betsy Dart attained her masters degree in textile science from Cornell University in 1982, her plan was to go into the business of clothing design. This plan changed, however, when her daughter Dalia was diagnosed with leukemia. In 1992, as Dart sat in a hospital isolation room with her 5-year-old daughter, she watched the hospital personnel wipe down toys, instruments and surfaces, standard procedures to help prevent Dalia, with her compromised immune system, from developing infections. The room also contained an air sampler to track the level of microorganisms in the air. However, in spite of these procedures, …