title: PET in patients with clear-cut multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS).
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) is a controversially discussed symptom complex. Patients afflicted by MCS react to very low and generally non-toxic concentrations of environmental chemicals. It has been suggested that MCS leads to neurotoxic damage or neuroimmunological alteration in the brain detectable by position emission tomography (PET) and single photon emission computer tomography (SPECT). These methods are often applied to MCS patients for diagnosis, although they never proved appropriate.
  
  
  METHODS
  We scanned 12 MCS patients with PET, hypothesizing that it would reveal abnormal findings.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mild glucose hypometabolism was present in one patient. In comparison with normal controls, the patient group showed no significant functional brain changes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This first systematic PET study in MCS patients revealed no hint of neurotoxic or neuroimmunological brain changes of functional significance.
authors.affiliation: Toxikologische Abteilung der II. Medizinischen Klinik und Poliklinik, Technischen Universität München, Klinikum rechts der Isar, München. sbornschein@lrz.tu-muenchen.de
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bornschein
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hausteiner
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Drzezga
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bartenstein
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schwaiger
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Förstl
authors.forename: Th
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Zilker
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005947:Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018777:Multiple Chemical Sensitivity / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D012016:Reference Values; D014055:Tomography, Emission-Computed; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon
chemical_list: D005947:Glucose