sick building syndrome

noun

: a set of symptoms (such as headache, fatigue, and eye irritation) typically affecting workers in modern airtight office buildings that is believed to be caused by indoor pollutants (such as formaldehyde fumes or microorganisms) compare multiple chemical sensitivity

Examples of sick building syndrome in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Joan Bennett didn’t believe in sick building syndrome. —Julie Rehmeyer, Discover Magazine, 14 Jan. 2014

Indoor air pollution causes a constellation of symptoms: headaches, fatigue, and low productivity, sometimes referred to as sick building syndrome. —Lisa Wood Shapiro, Wired, 12 Dec. 2019

Word History

First Known Use

1983, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

sick building syndrome

noun

sick build·​ing syndrome -ˈbil-diŋ- 

: a set of symptoms (as headache, fatigue, eye irritation, and breathing difficulties) that typically affect workers in modern airtight office buildings, that are believed to be caused by indoor pollutants (as formaldehyde fumes, particulate matter, or microorganisms), and that tend to disappear when affected individuals leave the building

—abbreviation SBS compare building-related illness