The quality of air inside a building is a combination of pollution from the air outside the building and pollution generated from sources or activities within the buildings. Poor IAQ may cause workers, occupants and even the visiting public to experience a range of non-specific symptoms that affect their comfort or health. These symptoms are collectively known as sick building syndrome (SBS) or tight building syndrome and include

Headache
Fatigue
Shortness of breath
Sinus congestion
Eye,nose, and throat irritation
Skin irritation
Nausea

The symptoms of SBS tend to appear at the beginning of the week, increase each day of the week, and disappear when the person is away from the building.Although temperature and relative humidity are considered "thermal comfort" parameters instead of "air quality" parameters, they underlie many complaints about "poor air quality." Temperature and humidity are also among the many factors that affect indoor contaminant levels.

Workers typically identify their workplace environment as having poor air quality because they experience symptoms at the office that are greatly reduced or alleviated when they leave. While each air quality concern will be evaluated and efforts made to correct the problem in an expeditious manner, concerns related to air quality in a building must be persistent and affect at least 25% of the workforce in an area before it is considered an IAQ issue. When we look at an IAQ problem, we could be examining any one or group of issues from a broad range of concerns. Some common IAQ issues include stuffy air, odors, sleepiness, headaches, sinus congestion, dry itching or burning eyes, skin irritation, dry or irritated throats, sneezing, and dizziness.

It is important to remember that while occupant complaints may be related to time at work, they may not necessarily be due to an IAQ issue. Many air quality complaints may be caused by non-air contamination factors, such as noise, lighting, workstation design and job related stress. Also, the presence of transient odors does not necessarily constitute poor indoor air quality. Transient odors may include smells pulled in with the outside air such as vehicle exhaust or roofing repair work fumes and paint or construction odors within a building. This is not to say that some transient odors will not cause short-term headaches or mucous membrane irritation. Generally these odors are short-lived and do not present a long-term health hazard. Finally, individual sensitivities will cause symptoms to typical air pollutant levels in some people while the majority of people with the same exposure are not affected.

EVALUATING INDOOR AIR QUALITY

IMPROVING INDOOR AIR QUALITY: SOURCE REDUCTION

IMPROVING VENTILATION IN OFFICES AND SCHOOLS