# The effect of high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters on high particulate rural Alaska Native homes

> **NIH NIH P20** · ALASKA NATIVE TRIBAL HEALTH CONSORTIUM · 2024 · $126,928

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT – Research Project 3: “The effect of high efficiency particulate air
(HEPA) filters on high particulate rural Alaska Native homes”
Alaska Native and American Indian (AN/AI) residents of rural Alaska experience a higher burden of acute and
chronic respiratory disease than the general US population. Many AN/AI people living in rural Alaska
experience poor indoor air quality (IAQ) because of substandard housing, household crowding, tobacco and
woodstove use, and inadequate ventilation. Poor IAQ harms respiratory health, especially in arctic climates
where residents spend approximately 90% of time indoors, and these factors have all been associated with
respiratory disease.
Portable high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters effectively reduce indoor particulate matter
concentrations. Limited studies have evaluated the effectiveness of HEPA filters at removing particulate matter
in rural Alaska but excluded homes in which smokers reside. Because poor indoor air quality in the homes of
smokers and woodstove usage causes a high burden on respiratory health, it is important to evaluate the
performance of HEPA filtration in these “high particulate” homes.
The objective of this research is to evaluate the impact of HEPA filtration units among “high particulate” AN/AI
homes in rural Alaska, where woodstoves are utilized for heating or a smoker resides in the home. We
hypothesize that the use of HEPA filters will improve indoor air quality significantly and will decrease
respiratory signs and symptoms of residents. We will enroll 15 participants and test our central hypothesis
through the following aims:
(1) Measure the effect of HEPA filters on air quality in “high particulate” homes.
(2) Evaluate the impact of HEPA filters on reported respiratory symptoms for participants.
(3) Assess acceptability and feasibility of personal exposure monitoring devices among rural Alaska Native
participants, describe personal exposure to air pollutants other than PM2.5 that are known to be harmful to
human health, and assess whether HEPA filtration changes personal exposure to these pollutants.
This study will provide valuable information on the effects of HEPA filtration on indoor air quality and
respiratory health outcomes in an indigenous population with a high burden of lung disease and unique risk
factors that have been excluded from other studies – those living in “high particulate” homes. Additionally, we
will assess the acceptability and feasibility of wearable personal exposure monitoring devices, a new
technology that has not been utilized among AN/AI populations.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10770964
- **Project number:** 1P20GM152302-01
- **Recipient organization:** ALASKA NATIVE TRIBAL HEALTH CONSORTIUM
- **Principal Investigator:** Jennifer Dawn Dobson
- **Activity code:** P20 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $126,928
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-05-01 → 2029-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10770964

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10770964, The effect of high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters on high particulate rural Alaska Native homes (1P20GM152302-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10770964. Licensed CC0.

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