About CIRS & Biotoxin Illness
Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS) is a multi-system, multi-symptom illness triggered by exposure to biotoxin-producing organisms.
MoldToxinTest is built on the clinical research of Dr. Ritchie Shoemaker, MD — a physician who spent over two decades studying biotoxin illness and developed the Shoemaker Protocol used by practitioners worldwide. The Visual Contrast Sensitivity test and 13-cluster symptom methodology implemented here are based on his validated diagnostic framework. This tool carefully implements Dr. Shoemaker's work for modern mold problems and extends it for mold toxicity in tropical areas, homes, and high-humidity environments where year-round moisture creates persistent mold exposure conditions rarely addressed in mainstream clinical guidance. It is an independent implementation of the protocol and is not endorsed by Dr. Shoemaker.
What is CIRS?
CIRS stands for Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome. It is an acquired illness triggered by exposure to biotoxins — toxic compounds produced by living organisms such as mold, bacteria, dinoflagellates, and others found in water-damaged buildings, tick bites, or certain marine environments.
Approximately 24% of the population carries HLA (Human Leukocyte Antigen) gene variants that prevent normal biotoxin clearance. In these individuals, biotoxins accumulate and trigger a persistent inflammatory cascade affecting multiple organ systems simultaneously.
The Shoemaker Protocol
Dr. Ritchie Shoemaker, MD, spent over two decades researching biotoxin illness and developed a systematic diagnostic and treatment protocol. His work identified 37 core symptoms organized into 13 clusters that are characteristic of CIRS, along with specific biomarker abnormalities (C4a, TGF-β1, MMP-9, MSH, VIP, and others).
The Visual Contrast Sensitivity (VCS) test was validated as part of this protocol as a rapid, non-invasive screening tool that can identify visual processing deficits caused by biotoxin exposure — often before other symptoms become severe.
Common Symptoms
CIRS affects nearly every organ system. Common presentations include:
Research
Backed by Science
The screening this site implements rests on published work, not opinion. These are the papers that matter most to what the test measures and why.
Mold inhalation causes innate immune activation, neural, cognitive and emotional dysfunction
Controlled study showing that inhaled mold spores trigger innate immune activation in the hippocampus, reducing neurogenesis and impairing memory. It offers a mechanism for the cognitive and emotional symptoms people report after mold exposure, and it held for non-toxic spore fragments as well as toxic ones.
RNA-Seq on patients with chronic inflammatory response syndrome (CIRS) treated with vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) shows a shift in metabolic state and innate immune functions that coincide with healing
Gene expression study in CIRS patients who had not responded to the standard protocol. Differential expression across immune regulators shifted alongside clinical improvement, supporting a measurable biological basis for the illness rather than a symptom label.
Black Mold and Human Health: Understanding Biotoxin Exposure, Chronic Symptoms and the Role of Early Screening
Reviews biotoxin exposure from water-damaged buildings, the chronic multi-system symptom picture that follows, and the case for screening early rather than after years of misdiagnosis. It cites this screening tool by name.
Read the paper