Association of Sick Building Syndrome with Indoor Air Parameters

Energy crisis in 1973 led to smaller residential and office buildings with lower air changes. This resulted in development of Sick Building Syndrome (SBS). The objective of this study was to assess the association of SBS with individual factors and indoor air pollutants among employees in two office buildings of Petroleum Industry Health Organization in Tehran city.

The association between personal and environmental factors and SBS symptoms was examined by a reliable and valid combined questionnaire. Environmental parameters were measured using calibrated instruments.

The results suggested that SBS symptoms were more common in women than men. Malaise and headache were the most common symptoms in women and men. Throat dryness, cough, sputum, and wheezing were less prevalent among employees in both offices. Light-intensity was significantly associated with some symptoms such as skin dryness (P = 0.049), eye pain (P = 0.026), and malaise (P = 0.043). There were no significant differences in prevalence of SBS symptoms between female workers of the two offices (P>0.05).

The main causes of SBS among the employees were recycling of air in rooms using fan coils, traffic noise, poor lighting, and buildings located in a polluted metropolitan area.