Are lingering mold spores a concern after moving away from mold?
TLDR: looking for advice about spores
My family moved out of a studio rental that had minor mold growth on the baseboards and windowsills from poor ventilation during a cold winter. We tested an agar plate at a lab and it had cladosporium and penicillium. My partner is dealing with health issues (fatigue, brain fog, cognitive issues, joint pain, itchiness) and had ochratoxin, aflatoxin, trichothecene, gliotoxin, and zearalenone positive on a mycotoxin panel mostly in the “equivocal” range. I’m not experiencing symptoms. We’re in interior Alaska.
We moved to a new studio rental within a week of finding the mold but suspect we’ve been exposed for a handful of years. We got rid of all furniture, rugs, beds, and other soft surfaces. We thoroughly washed all linens with hot water and oxi clean and wiped all surfaces with bleach or vinegar. I kept some books with sentimental value after spraying them with vinegar. We didn’t find mold growing on any of the items we kept. In our new place we did an ozone treatment and have had both a Dyson purifier and Shark neverchange purifier running since but both came from the previous home. Now we have a Winix c610 running.
My partner is still having symptoms and thinks our dogs are now affected. We don’t have mold growing in our new place. The veterinarian wasn’t too concerned and didn’t have conclusive answers.
Would lingering mold spores from the previous exposure still be a health concern for someone with a sensitivity? How do we feel about mycotoxin panels? Are the books the problem here? Do we need to move again? What more can we do?
If allowed, I’d love recommendations for veterinarians dealing with mycotoxins in dogs or for a virtual professional consultant we can talk to. Thanks all!