A term used to refer to the condition in which a majority of building occupants experience a variety of health and/or comfort effects linked to time spent in a particular building, but where no specific illness or causative agent can be identified. Symptoms often include headaches, eye irritation and respiratory irritation. (Gobbell, 1994, p. 69)
term used to describe the effects of high levels of indoor air pollution
A vaguely defined condition or malaise affecting workers in a building, which typically improves or disappears within hours of the worker leaving the building. It occurs more often in airconditioned buildings than in naturally ventilated buildings. Symptoms may include lethargy, dry eyes, throat and skin, blocked or running nose and sometimes a feeling of tightness around the chest. The condition has been attributed to both the physical and psychological climate.
Term sometimes used to describe situations in which building occupants experience acute health and/or comfort effects that appear to be linked to time spent in a particular building, but where no specific illness or cause can be identified. The complaints may be localized in a particular room or zone, or may be spread throughout the building.
A situation in which a building's occupants experience acute health and/or comfort effects that appear to be linked to time spent there, but where no specific illness or cause can be identified. Complaints may be localized to a particular room or zone, or may spread throughout the building.
Acute, nonspecific conditions caused by conditions in or nearby to a facility.
"SBS" If more than 20 percent of the building occupants complain of such problems as headache, eye irritation, fatique and dizziness for more than two weeks; if the symptoms are relieved when the complainant leaves the building; and, if no specific cause of the problem can be identified. (ASHRAE Journal, July 1988, p.40)
one of the most common names for the illness acquired from working in moldy or water-damaged buildings
Situations in which people experience acute health effects and physical discomfort apparently linked to time spent in a certain room or building. Building-related illness (BRI) is a term used when diagnosable illnesses are attributed directly to airborne building contaminants. Symptoms may include headache; eye, nose, or throat irritation; dry cough; dry or itchy skin; dizziness and nausea; difficulty in concentrating; fatigue; and sensitivity to odors.
a condition that causes drowsiness, lethargy and skin irritations in office workers due to poor environmental quality.
Illness associated with poor air quality in structures.
See indoor air quality problem.
often blamed on air conditioning, but is primarily due to insufficient or poor ventilation and also the chemicals used in manufacture of furniture, carpets and other office equipment or processes
A set of symptoms related to exposure from an indoor environment that are alleviated upon leaving the structure.
(SBS): Term that refers to a set of symptoms that affect some number of building occupants during the time they spend in the building and diminish or go away during periods when they leave the building. Cannot be traced to specific pollutants or sources within the building. (Contrast with " Building related illness").
(SBS) A phenomenon in which building occupants experience a variety of health and/or comfort effects linked to time spent in a particular building, but where no specific illness or causative agent can be identified. Symptoms in sufferers often include headaches, eye irritation, and respiratory irritation. Alternatively, a set of symptoms that affect some number of building occupants during the time they spend in the building and diminish or go away altogether during periods when they leave the building.
The term "sick building syndrome" (SBS) is used to describe situations in which building occupants experience discomforting health conditions that appear to be linked to time spent in a building, but no specific illness or cause can be identified. EPA Sick Building Syndrome Factsheet
The occurrence of health problems to occupants of a building related to the construction and mechanical systems of the building.
an increase in the frequency of building, occupant, reported complaints associated with acute, non-specific symptoms in non-industrial environments that improve while away from the building.
collection of symptoms reported by workers in some modern buildings
An illness that is caused by indoor air pollution.
Sick building syndrome (SBS) is a combination of ailments (a syndrome) associated with an individual's place of work (typically, but not always, an office building), though there have also been instances of SBS in residential buildings. A 1984 World Health Organisation report into the syndrome suggested up to 30% of new and remodelled buildings worldwide may be linked to symptoms of SBS. Sick building causes are frequently pinned down to flaws in the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, and are often 'cured' by boosting the overall turn-over rate in fresh air exchange with the outside air.