People who are suffering from indoor air-related symptoms are treated by primary and occupational healthcare services. Since the list of symptoms is particular to each individual, the physician will assess the situation through discussion.
Through the discussion, the physician tries to confirm the suspicion of the illness (e.g. asthma) that could explain the symptoms. If the physician suspects that the symptoms have been caused by a disease, they will carry out the necessary diagnostic tests, discuss treatment, and try to identify factors that aggravate the symptoms or illness.
The physician may also try to analyse the temporal connection between the symptoms and specific buildings. In individual cases, the link between the symptoms and specific water damage in a building is always uncertain. However, the physician must recommend that appropriate building surveys be carried out in the building, if water damage is suspected to have caused the symptoms.
Confidentiality and mutual respect are important. The importance of the doctor–patient relationship is also emphasised in the Current Care Guidelines. If the patient is experiencing respiratory symptoms, it is often necessary to determine whether they are prone to atopy. Testing of common allergens is usually enough to determine this.
So far, there are no laboratory tests that could establish a causal link between water damage or mould exposure and symptoms. General symptoms are assessed on the basis of standard medical criteria.
Respiratory symptoms and diseases are highly common. Around 20% of Finns suffer from a respiratory disorder at some point in their life or have been diagnosed with a respiratory disease. Treatment always follows normal treatment practices for the disease in question, regardless of the cause.