Persian Gulf War Syndrome Elective Subject :Current Health Problem Elaborated by Mostafa Jamaliramin

What is Gulf war syndrome? In the years since the end of the war a great deal of research and investigation has been devoted to this question. At this point, we can offer some general possibilities and answers. Gulf War Syndrome (GWS) is probably not a single, new illness or disorder. Rather, GWS is most likely a collection of different illnesses with similar symptoms. This has caused confusion and has made it difficult for researchers to come up with a case definition.

Chronology of events that lead to the current Gulf War Syndrome: Iraq invades Kuwait, 'Desert Shield' begins. U.S. warns of Iraq's military and chemical, biological and nuclear weapons capabilities. 'Desert Storm' begins. Troops invade Iraq and Kuwait, and return Kuwait to it's former rulers, in one of the shortest wars on record. Troops return home and begin to complain of unusual symptoms. Gulf War Syndrome is discovered.

Medical problems by soldier nationality US & UK the highest rates of excessive illness As of March 1996,of the 697,000 U.S. troops who served in the war, approximately 108,000 are on a Registry French & Australian troops the lowest illness rate

Symptom U.S. UK Australia Denmark Fatigue 23% 10% 16% Headache 17% 18% 7% 13% Memory problem 32% 28% 12% Muscle/ joint pain 5% 2% Diarrhea _ 9% dyspepsia Skin problem 8% Shortness of breath 11%

Symptoms of Gulf War Illnesses Chronic Fatigue Signs and symptoms involving skin rashes Headache Muscle pain Neurological signs or symptoms Neuropsychological signs or symptoms Sleep disturbances Gastrointestinal signs or symptoms Cardiovascular signs or symptoms Menstrual disorders

Possible Causes combustion products from depleted uranium munitions, side-effects from the early 1990s' anthrax vaccine infectious diseases from parasites, chemical weapons such as nerve gas or mustard gas and combinations of the above factors

Anthrax Vaccine Anthrax vaccine is a vaccine against the infectious disease, anthrax. A study linking squalene ,an experimental vaccine adjuvant, to individuals with the clinical signs of Gulf War Syndrome was published in 2002. The published findings strongly suggest that the squalene contaminated vaccines could be responsible for the Gulf War Syndrome What is Anthrax? Anthrax (Greek for coal) is an acute disease in humans and pigs that is caused by the bacterium Bacillus anthracis and is highly lethal in some forms. Anthrax is one of only a few bacteria that can form long lived spores.

The anthrax vaccine was originally licensed in 1970 by the U. S The anthrax vaccine was originally licensed in 1970 by the U.S. National Institutes of Health 41% of U.S. combat soldiers and 57-75% of UK combat soldiers were vaccinated against anthrax The early 1990s version of the anthrax vaccine was a source of several serious side effects including GWI symptoms

From 1998 to 2000, more than 1,859,000 doses of anthrax vaccine were distributed in the United States.During that decade, 1,544 adverse events were reported to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), 76 of these events (5%) were serious (results in death, hospitalisation, or permanent disability or is life-threatening) Primary vaccination consists of three subcutaneous injections at zero, two, and four weeks, and three vaccinations at six, twelve, and eighteen months followed by annual boosters. For prolonged protection, annual boosters are recommended

Depleted uranium Chemical weapons Many of the symptoms, other than low cancer incidence rates, of Gulf War syndrome are similar to the symptoms of organophosphate, mustard gas, and nerve gas poisoning. Gulf War veterans were exposed to a number of sources of these compounds, including nerve gas and pesticides. Chemical weapons (Deleted Uranium) was used in tank kinetic energy penetrator on a large scale for the first time in the Gulf War. DU munitions often burn when they impact a hard target, producing toxic combustion products.

Infectious diseases There are some who believe that Gulf War Syndrome is the result of a contagious bacteria There are anecdotal reports of improvement in some victims when treated with antibiotics Stress War is a stressful experience or that all wars carry psychological consequence Many psychiatric conditions, including depression and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) can present with physical as well as psychological symptoms.

Controversy There has been considerable controversy over whether or not Gulf War syndrome is a physical medical condition related to sufferers' Gulf War service Evidence for US veteran affairs secretary panel research found: The veterans' illnesses are neurological and apparently are linked to exposure to neurotoxins, such as the nerve gas sarin, the anti-nerve gas drug pyridostigmin bromide, and pesticides that affect the nervous system.

Research studies conducted since the war have consistently indicated that psychiatric illness, combat experience or other deployment-related stressors do not explain Gulf War veterans illnesses in the large majority of ill veterans. lower fertility & 40 to 50% more likely to be unable to start a pregnancy

Evidence against: Similar syndromes have been seen as an after effect of other conflicts Post traumatic stress disorder(PTSD) after the Vietnam war & shell shock after World War 1 have similar syndromes of the GWS No single cluster of symptoms that constitute a syndrome unique to Gulf War veterans has been identified

Is This a Real Disease? A November 1996 article in the New England Journal of Medicine found no difference in death rates, hospitalisation rates or self-reported symptoms between Persian Gulf vets and non-Persian Gulf vets The studies did find a statistically significant elevation in the number of traffic accidents suffered by Persian Gulf vets vs. non-Persian Gulf vets.

New research from the UK, comparing the health of those who served in gulf war with those who did not, found no evidence of any rise in multi symptom conditions associated with Gulf War Syndrome This casts doubts on the role of certain exposures such as anthrax vaccine, depleted uranium,…..

Gulf War Syndrome is, most likely, an unfortunate bi-product of a combination of things: Tremendous media hype surrounding the threat of chemical and biological weapons during the First Gulf War The litigious nature of our society The fact that the United States Government is a target for litigation and those with anti-war sentiment

Acknowledgement Database set up by the American Legion http://en.wikipedia.org American Gulf War Veteran Association