Aim: 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.
Method: 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.
Conclusion: This first systematic PET study in MCS patients revealed no hint of neurotoxic or neuroimmunological brain changes of functional significance.