The environmental symptoms questionnaire: revisions and new filed data

The Environmental Symptoms Questionnaire (ESQ) was developed to obtain information about the incidence and severity of symptoms produced by exposure to several different climatic conditions. A subsequent revision is reported here, along with a description of its use in two studies involving physical stresses frequently encountered by military personnel. The first study examined the effects of prolonged flight on the health and physical work performance of men assigned to an overseas station. The second study tested the effects of acute altitude exposure on the load-carrying capacity of men over a period of several days. Five independent symptom factors were identified in the data of the first study, and then were applied to the analyses of treatments of both studies. The factor scores exhibited predictable and meaningful data in both cases. The factors are described, results are compared to previous studies, and general recommendations for use of the questionnaire are made.