Safety and Health at Work Vol. 13 Supplement 2022
Environmental intolerance to indoor air

Safety and Health at Work Vol. 13 Supplement 2022
Environmental intolerance to indoor air

Environmental intolerance, indoor air

Introduction: Symptoms and reactions to indoor air in office-like environments are very common, reported by up to one third of workers in Finland. Three decades of national actions have improved recognition and intervention of indoor air problems. However, the symptoms and reactions have not withdrawn, and they continue even in the absence of defects in indoor air (IA). Some individuals develop a disabling chronic sensitivity to IA.
Materials and Methods: A review of clinical studies on non-specific illness and environmental intolerance related to IA.
Results: Individuals with disability related to a suspected water-damage related asthma or respiratory symptoms showed a clinical picture of environmental intolerance and functional disorders. Disability was not caused by exposure but high subjective risk estimation of exposures. Individuals with intolerance appreciated psychoeducation and short cognitive behavioral therapy but it did not advance recovery.
Conclusions: In the absence of disease, IA related sensitivity is consistent with environmental intolerance. Disabling intolerance can be seen as the severe end of an annoyance continuum, which may share the same central nervous system mechanisms than noise sensitivity and functional disorders. The insufficient recovery form environmental intolerance may be due to changeless risk perceptions.

Markku Sainio, Aki Vuokko and Sanna Selinheimo

Elsevier Korea LLC

January 2022

Sri Wahyuni

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Safety and Health at Work Vol. 13 Supplement 2022