Methods and standards of pollen monitoring—significance of pollen measurements at different altitudes

Background The measurement of pollen concentrations has been performed according to various protocols in recent decades. In all approaches the following questions were of importance: the positioning of the measuring device (whether at roof or nose level), the reliability as well as the comparability of measurements. Methods Current methods for pollen measurements and previous studies on measurement heights are presented and compared. Results The most widely used device is the Hirst pollen and spore trap. Its data is widely used for pollen information, pollen prediction models, and clinical studies. The position of the trap at roof level remains the current standard as the pollen concentrations correlate best with “real world” situation and regional symptom data. Conclusion The guideline for the detection of pollen and spores for allergy networks (EN 16868:2019-09) in Europe was an important step towards standardization. Modern, automated measurement methods are still in experimental stage in terms of validation and comparability. Harmonization of data from different measurement methods is a future challenge.