Study finds no 'syndrome' for ailing Gulf War vets.

Although veterans of the first Gulf War report significantly more symptoms of illness than soldiers of the same period who were not deployed, a new report from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) finds no set of symptoms that constitute a syndrome unique to Gulf War veterans. However, the study sponsored by the VA found evidence that Gulf War veterans could be at greater risk of developing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and brain tumors.

"It is important to note that even though researchers haven't been able to put a label on those symptoms, the IOM study recognizes that veterans are suffering from illnesses and disabilities related to their service in the Gulf War," said National Service Director Randy Reese. "This new report also notes that researchers do not have the data needed to determine whether long-term health problems for many veterans are associated with service in the Gulf War. Because there were inadequate screenings and medical examinations before and after deployment, some veterans have difficulties with their claims for service-connected disability compensation."

The IOM report said pre-deployment screenings would have established a baseline for comparing the health status of veterans after deployment. The report also calls for better monitoring of exposure to contaminants in the field. There was almost no direct monitoring of Gulf War soldiers' exposures to contaminants, and therefore it might never be possible to pinpoint if an exposure during their service might be associated with an illness, the panel noted.

The committee reviewed 850 relevant studies, some of which relied on self-reporting of symptoms from veterans, and others that used objective measures of symptoms and exposures. The cumulative evidence from studies that relied on veterans' self-reports indicates that almost 30 percent of Gulf War veterans have experienced a multi-symptom illness compared with 16 percent of non-deployed personnel, according to the report.

A number of reports have indicated that troops were potentially exposed to satin gas, pesticides, air pollutants, vaccines, solvents and pharmaceuticals.

"Gulf War veterans consistently report experiencing a wide range of symptoms, and this the case for both American veterans and military personnel from Canada, Australia, and other countries who served in the Persian Gulf," said committee chair Lynn Goldman, a professor of occupational and environmental health at Johns Hopkins University. "But because the symptoms vary greatly among individuals, they do not point to a syndrome unique to these veterans. Unfortunately, because of the lack of objective pre-deployment health information, we do not have the baseline data needed to draw more definitive conclusions about many aspects of these veterans' long-term health."

The committee identified three studies that point to a possible link between Gulf War service and increased risk for developing ALS, a rare disorder that occurs in five of every 100,000 people in the general population. To date there is no evidence that overall rates of cancer are increased in Gulf War veterans, but some evidence points to a possible association between service and brain cancer.

"Because ALS occurs so rarely, any individual veteran's chances of developing the disease are still generally low," Goldman said. "Although the reports linking Gulf War service to ALS and brain cancer are inconclusive at this time, we do recommend follow-up studies to monitor rates of these diseases in Gulf War veterans," she added.

In addition to increased chances of experiencing a psychological condition such as depression, anxiety or posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), Gulf War veterans also were more likely to sustain transportation-related injuries or deaths in the first few years upon return from the war, but not in later years, the committee found. These findings are consistent with studies of personnel who served in other armed conflicts in which higher rates of PTSD and motor vehicle fatalities were reported in the years following service.

The new report details the many sources of chemicals that could have harmed the health of the veterans. Among them are the smoke from oil-well fires that were set by Iraqis as they retreated at the end of the war and the potential exposures arising from the U.S. military bombing of a poison-gas munitions dump at Khamisiyah.

"Veterans who believe their disabilities may be related to their service in the Gulf War are urged to contact the nearest DAV National Service Office for information and assistance with filing a claim for service-connected disability," said Reese.