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Jeffrey Engel, MD
East Carolina University School of Medicine Greenville, NC

JAMA. 1996;275(21):1635.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

In Reply.

—I agree with Dr Atkins' statement that the sick building syndrome has not been demonstrated to be of an allergic origin. I also concur with her advice regarding correction of air-handling systems in a building, rather than removing people from the workplace, as the treatment of choice for this illness. These points are particularly important when dealing with an epidemic associated with a unique environmental exposure.

However, the case for discussion was a single person with symptoms occurring 4 times a year, certainly not a history suggestive of an epidemic or a problem at the workplace. My comments were intended to broaden the differential diagnosis beyond infectious causes and remind readers that acute illnesses mimicking infections may be due to exposures to noxious stimuli other than microorganisms. Certainly, if the woman in this case can identify an environment that she encounters 4 times a year that triggers the . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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