Gulf War and Health

Gulf War and Health
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 358
Release: 2008-03-25
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 0309101778

The sixth in a series of congressionally mandated reports on Gulf War veterans' health, this volume evaluates the health effects associated with stress. Since the launch of Operation Desert Storm in 1991, there has been growing concern about the physical and psychological health of Gulf War and other veterans. In the late 1990s, Congress responded by asking the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to review and evaluate the scientific and medical literature regarding associations between illness and exposure to toxic agents, environmental or wartime hazards, and preventive medicines or vaccines in members of the armed forces who were exposed to such agents. Deployment to a war zone has a profound impact on the lives of troops and on their family members. There are a plethora of stressors associated with deployment, including constant vigilance against unexpected attack, difficulty distinguishing enemy combatants from civilians, concerns about survival, caring for the badly injured, and witnessing the death of a person. Less traumatic but more pervasive stressors include anxiety about home life, such as loss of a job and income, impacts on relationships, and absence from family. The focus of this report, by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) Committee on Gulf War and Health: Physiologic, and Psychosocial Effects of Deployment-Related Stress, is the long-term effects of deployment-related stress. Gulf War and Health: Volume 6. Physiologic, and Psychosocial Effects of Development Related Stress evaluates the scientific literature regarding association between deployment-related stressors and health effects, and provides meaningful recommendations to remedy this problem.

Stress

Stress
Author: Grant N. Marshall
Publisher: RAND Corporation
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2000
Genre: Persian Gulf War, 1991
ISBN: 9780833028600

A significant proportion of U.S. military personnel who served in the Persian Gulf War have reported various health problems following their service, some of which remain unexplained. The conflict presented these veterans with an array of stressful experiences both before, during, and after deployment, and those experiences may have contributed to their reported health difficulties. Research recorded in the general scientific literature has shown that stress can produce myriad health effects, and that these effects can manifest themselves as symptoms and conditions similar to those that the veterans report. Empirical studies of Gulf War veterans indicate that stress may play some role in the etiology or exacerbation of certain of these health problems, yet available research does not conclusively demonstrate the causal role of stress in the unexplained illnesses.

Gulf War and Health

Gulf War and Health
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 243
Release: 2013-04-04
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309278058

Chronic multisymptom illness (CMI) is a serious condition that imposes an enormous burden of suffering on our nation's veterans. Veterans who have CMI often have physical symptoms (such as fatigue, joint and muscle pain, and gastrointestinal symptoms) and cognitive symptoms (such as memory difficulties). For the purposes of this report, the committee defined CMI as the presence of a spectrum of chronic symptoms experienced for 6 months or longer in at least two of six categories-fatigue, mood, and cognition, musculoskeletal, gastrointestinal, respiratory, and neurologic-that may overlap with but are not fully captured by known syndromes (such as CFS, fibromyalgia, and IBS) or other diagnoses. Despite considerable efforts by researchers in the United States and elsewhere, there is no consensus among physicians, researchers, and others as to the cause of CMI. There is a growing belief that no specific causal factor or agent will be identified. Many thousands of Gulf War veterans1 who have CMI live with sometimes debilitating symptoms and seek an effective way to manage their symptoms. Estimates of the numbers of 1991 Gulf War veterans who have CMI range from 175,000 to 250,000 (about 25-35% of the 1991 Gulf War veteran population), and there is evidence that CMI in 1991 Gulf War veterans may not resolve over time. Preliminary data suggest that CMI is occurring in veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars as well. In addition to summarizing the available scientific and medical literature regarding the best treatments for chronic multisymptom illness among Gulf War veterans, Gulf War and Health: Volume 9: Treatment for Chronic Multisymptom Illness recommends how best to disseminate this information throughout the VA to improve the care and benefits provided to veterans, recommends additional scientific studies and research initiatives to resolve areas of continuing scientific uncertainty and recommends such legislative or administrative action as the IOM deems appropriate in light of the results of its review.

A Review of the Scientific Literature as it Pertains to Gulf War Illnesses: Chemical and biological warfare agents

A Review of the Scientific Literature as it Pertains to Gulf War Illnesses: Chemical and biological warfare agents
Author: William S. Augerson
Publisher: Minnesota Historical Society
Total Pages: 322
Release: 1998
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9780833026804

Many Gulf War veterans have reported an array of physical and mental health complaints since the war and the question on everyone's mind is Can we identify a cause or is this a coincidence? To complement efforts by the Defense Department and other federal agencies in their attempt to understand the full range of health implications of service in that conflict, RAND undertook a major study to summarize the scientific literature on the known health effects of given exposures to such risk factors as oil well fires, chemical and biological warfare agents, depleted uranium pesticides, pyridostigmine bromide, immunizations, infectious diseases, and stress. In this landmark book series the authors report on their literature review summarize what is known about the range of actual exposures in the Gulf, and assess the plausibility of the risk factor at hand as a cause of illness. The authors caution that more research on health effects and exposures remains to be completed before definitive statements can be made and make recommendations for additional research.

A Review of the Scientific Literature as it Pertains to Gulf War Illnesses

A Review of the Scientific Literature as it Pertains to Gulf War Illnesses
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 118
Release:
Genre: Persian Gulf syndrome
ISBN:

RAND presents the full text of "A Review of the Scientific Literature As It Pertains to Gulf War Illnesses, Volume 5: Chemical and Biological Warfare Agents," by William S. Augerson. The author discusses chemical and biological warfare, skin-damaging agents, toxins, nerve agents, and research on the chemical and biological agents.

Gulf War Illnesses

Gulf War Illnesses
Author: United States. General Accounting Office
Publisher:
Total Pages: 68
Release: 2000
Genre: Persian Gulf War, 1991
ISBN:

Gulf War Illnesses

Gulf War Illnesses
Author: United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Appropriations. Subcommittee on Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
Publisher:
Total Pages: 86
Release: 2001
Genre: History
ISBN: