There had been complaints of Sick Building Syndrome symptoms by employees in a large sealed office complex in Ottowa, Canada ever since it had opened. This prompted a comprehensive survey by questionnaire coupled with limited environmental measurements. Most respondents complained of irritation of the upper respiratory tract, the eyes and skin as well as various other health problems. These began shortly after coming to work in the building and were troublesome only during work; moving to other work in other parts of the complex made no difference.

An epidemiological study was instigated by reports from a Denver office building of cases of building-related asthma and hyper-sensitivity pneumonitis. The methodology used was a cross-sectional and self-administered questionnaire completed by workers in this building and a similar one in the suburbs. The Denver workers showed a much higher rate of respiratory disease than the suburban workers (512 compared to 281).

This was a study of the possible causes of an outbreak of encephalitis on Saipan in October 1990. The virus was not isolated but patients seroconverted to Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus, suggesting the first known outbreak of the disease on American territory since 1947. Ten cases were found in a population of 40,000. In a survey after the outbreak, the prevalence of antibody to JE virus was 4.2% among 234 native Saipan residents. Risk factors for infection were age, crowded living conditions and lack of air conditioning.

Th is paper exmined whether US military personnel during Operation Desert Shield were adversely affected by respiratory disease due to crowded living conditions and high levels of suspended and blowing sand. The research was based on a questionnaire given to 2598 combatants stationed in North East Saudi Arabia for a mean of 102 days. Surface sand was analyzed from seven locations by scanning, electron microscopy and X Ray diffraction.

This study compared the prevalence of sick building syndrome among two groups of public service workers in Perugia, central Italy. 525 were employed in an air conditioned building with fan-coil units in every room and 281 in three naturally ventilated buildings. All the subjects completed a questionnaire about work-related SBS symptoms with an occupational medicine specialist.

Air conditioning systems are often held to have effects upon the workforce. This research tried to assess whether continuous exposure to air-conditioning during working hours had any observable effect on health or not. A comparison was made of absence due to sickness recorded by the employers' doctors over two years in two groups of workers employed in similar jobs in the French National Electric and Gas Company in Western France. One group spent most of their time in air conditioned offices but the other worked in a natural atmosphere.

The study of the causes of Sick Building Syndrome and its possible solutions have been bedevilled by methodological problems. This pilot study assessed the viability of using an expermental double blind cross-over study to overcome such difficulties. The experiment involved varying the rate of supply of outdoor air from 10 cubic feet per minute per person (cfmpp) to 20 cfmpp or 50 cfmpp by controlling the building's heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems.

This was a study of the relationship between mechanical ventilation and sick business syndrome in an office building with 1250 employees, where workers blamed the mechanical ventilation and indoor air quality for causing typical SBS symptoms such as nasal, eye, skin and mucous membrane irritations, lethargy and headaches). The building's mechanical ventilation rates were high.

This study investigates the effects of ventilation on the spread of airborne diseases. After four weeks contact with a colleague suffering from cavitary tuberculosis 27 of 67 office workers had documented tuberculin skin test conversions. Complaints by workers for more than two years previously prompted studies of the air quality in the building before and after the tuberculosis exposure. Concentrations of Carbon Dioxide in many parts of the building exceeded recommended levels, indicating inadequate ventilation with external air.

The possible links between the prevalence of sick building syndrome (SBS) and personal. occupational and environmental factors were studied in a random sample of the population between the ages of 20 and 65 in three districts in middle Sweden. Those persons whose mother smoked or who were brought up in urban areas more commonly reported SBS symptoms. Other variables which were related to SBS symptoms were current urban residency, fresh paint, and preschool children in the home.