Mysterious clinical entities that both puzzle & polarize the medical community are not unusual. In trying to understand any emerging problem, health professionals question & probe for margins of the new, so-called disease within the framework of their previous knowledge, experience & belief systems. The syndrome called multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) is the latest mystery illness to challenge the medical & scientific communities. The proceedings published in this special issue of "Toxicology & Industrial Health" reflect ...
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Mysterious clinical entities that both puzzle & polarize the medical community are not unusual. In trying to understand any emerging problem, health professionals question & probe for margins of the new, so-called disease within the framework of their previous knowledge, experience & belief systems. The syndrome called multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) is the latest mystery illness to challenge the medical & scientific communities. The proceedings published in this special issue of "Toxicology & Industrial Health" reflect an attempt by one organization, The Association of Occupational & Environmental Clinics (AOEC), to provide a forum for its members to share their experience & learn from experts with diverse views in an intellectually challenging, honest, & open environment. The workshop was timely. Activity concerning MCS has been increasing in many sectors. The workshop was convened in September, 1991, to develop recommendations for a research agenda that could be pursued by governmental agencies, research institutes, the academic community, & others interested in furthering the scientific understanding of MCS. Both the invited speakers & AOEC members had a diversity of views, experience, & perspectives on MCS. The papers are printed here in a spirit of open inquiry, with no attempt to censor non-traditional or minority views. The reader is urged to pocket any pre-conceived notions while reading these papers & to give every author a fair hearing. When taken together, these papers will shed some light on this perplexing problem.
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