Self-reported sensitivity to chemical exposures in five clinical populations and healthy controls.
Two hundred and twenty-five subjects, including normal volunteers and patients with previously documented seasonal affective disorder (SAD), chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), Cushing's syndrome, Addison's disease and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), completed a self-rated inventory of reported sensitivity to various chemical exposures. Patients with CFS, Addison's disease and SAD self-reported more sensitivity to chemical exposures than normal controls. In addition, women reported more sensitivity than men. This report suggests that chemical sensitivity may be a relevant area to explore in certain medical and psychiatric populations. A possible relationship between reported chemical sensitivity and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis functioning is discussed.
Nawab
S S
SS
Section on Biological Rhythms, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-1390, USA. ssnawab@hotmail.com
Miller
C S
CS
Dale
J K
JK
Greenberg
B D
BD
Friedman
T C
TC
Chrousos
G P
GP
Straus
S E
SE
Rosenthal
N E
NE
D000224:Addison Disease / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D000328:Adult; D015897:Comorbidity; D003480:Cushing Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D015673:Fatigue Syndrome, Chronic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007030:Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018777:Multiple Chemical Sensitivity / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D010913:Pituitary-Adrenal System / Q000503:physiopathology; D016574:Seasonal Affective Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology