Evaluating building-related symptoms using the US EPA BASE study results

Indoor Air
H S BrightmanJohn D Spengler

Abstract

In order to develop baseline data about United States office buildings, the United States Environmental Protection Agency conducted the Building Assessment Survey Evaluation (BASE) study, a systematic survey of 100 randomly selected United States office buildings, in the 1990s. This paper analyzes the self-reported work-related symptoms and job and workplace characteristics of 4326 respondents and compares results to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health's (NIOSH) study of 80 'complaint' buildings. Four distinct groups of symptoms, representing 'tiredness', 'mucosal irritation', 'neuropsychological', and 'lower respiratory' conditions emerged from factor analysis of work-related symptoms. The symptom grouping is identical for both surveys. Although the prevalence of each symptom is significantly higher in the NIOSH than in the BASE sample, there is overlap of the symptom distributions. In the BASE survey, 45% of the work force reported at least one work-related health symptom; 20% reported at least three symptoms. These findings imply that it is counterproductive to dichotomize buildings into healthy vs. unhealthy; instead the prevalence of health problems related to buildings span a continuum. These results...Continue Reading

References

Jan 1, 1987·The Annals of Occupational Hygiene·S BurgeA Robertson
Aug 29, 2002·American Journal of Public Health·Mark J MendellKenneth M Wallingford

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Citations

Jun 19, 2014·Environmental Science & Technology·Meryl D ColtonGary Adamkiewicz
May 12, 2012·Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine·Peder WolkoffHorst Mayer
Sep 8, 2012·International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health·Peder Wolkoff
Dec 8, 2015·Environment International·Peder WolkoffPaul T C Harrison
Oct 13, 2015·American Journal of Ophthalmology·Alberto López-MiguelMargarita Calonge
Oct 16, 2015·American Journal of Public Health·Meryl D ColtonGary Adamkiewicz
Apr 8, 2011·Indoor Air·W J FiskG Brunner
Jul 23, 2016·Indoor Air·P Wolkoff
Feb 23, 2017·Environmental Science. Processes & Impacts·Chunting Michelle WangAlastair C Lewis
Apr 13, 2018·International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health·Paolo Carrer, Peder Wolkoff
Nov 5, 2016·Environmental Geochemistry and Health·Yunyu PanRob N J Comans
May 8, 2014·Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology·Maya RamagopalStuart L Shalat
Jul 8, 2020·International Journal of Environmental Health Research·Efthymia TsantakiAlexis Benos

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