Is testing to determine toxicity warranted?
In a word, no; according to Harriett Ammann, a Senior Toxicologist for the Washington State Department of Health, “While testing for toxins (as opposed to testing for the presence of mold in the air) is useful for establishing [the cause] of disease, and adds to knowledge about mold toxicity in the indoor environment, prudent public health practice might advise speedy clean-up, or removal of heavily exposed populations from exposure as a first resort.”57 Further, according to John Banta, of Restoration Consultants, testing for mycotoxins, rather than mold spores that may be present in indoor air or structures is still experimental and not routinely offered.58 Banta and Gerber explain that most testing routinely performed at sites of infestation focuses on determining the type and quantity of mold present at the main site of mold infestation. This information is then used to determine to what extent the mold may have migrated throughout the building in an effort to reveal other, as yet
