[Mapping of environmental mycologic hazards using GIS method]

Intensive poultry production is associated with extreme densities of birds crammed into industrial-scale hen houses. Consequently, the bird keepers are exposed to elevated concentrations of dust. Exposure to dust, containing pathogenic mycological agents, may cause exacerbate asthma, allergic alveolitis, as well as organic dust toxic syndrome. Geographic Information System (GIS) allows to view, understand, question, interpret, and visualize biological data, among them mycological threats. The aim of the presently reported study was to create the mycological database from the chicken farms and their visualization on the map of Lower Silesia, Poland. Field data for Aspergillus fumigatus, A. flavus, Candida sp. were collected in Wrocław laboratory in 2008. GIS database was formed using ArcView 9.2. computer software. The visualization data on the digital maps were analyzed for the Health and Safety Executive.