Recent research on Gulf War Illness and other health problems in veterans of the 1991 Gulf War: effects of toxicant exposures during deployment

Details

• Personal Author:
  Binns JH ; Bloom FE ; Bunker JA ; Crawford F ; Golomb BA ; Grashow R ; Graves JC ; Hardie A ; Klimas N ; Knox M ; Meggs WJ ; Melling J ; O'Callaghan JP ; Philbert MA ; Steele L ; Sullivan K ; White RF
• Description:
  Veterans of Operation Desert Storm/Desert Shield - the 1991 Gulf War (GW) - are a unique population who returned from theater with multiple health complaints and disorders. Studies in the U.S. and elsewhere have consistently concluded that approximately 25-32% of this population suffers from a disorder characterized by symptoms that vary somewhat among individuals and include fatigue, headaches, cognitive dysfunction, musculoskeletal pain, and respiratory, gastrointestinal and dermatologic complaints. Gulf War Illness (GWI) is the term used to describe this disorder. In addition, brain cancer occurs at increased rates in subgroups of GW veterans, as do neuropsychological and brain imaging abnormalities. Chemical exposures have become the focus of etiologic GWI research because nervous system symptoms are prominent and many neurotoxicants were present in theater, including organophosphates (OPs), carbamates, and other pesticides; sarin/cyclosarin nerve agents, and pyridostigmine bromide (PB) medications used as prophylaxis against chemical warfare attacks. Psychiatric etiologies have been ruled out. This paper reviews the recent literature on the health of 1991 GW veterans, focusing particularly on the central nervous system and on effects of toxicant exposures. In addition, it emphasizes research published since 2008, following on an exhaustive review that was published in that year that summarizes the prior literature (RACGWI, 2008). We conclude that exposure to pesticides and/or to PB are causally associated with GWI and the neurological dysfunction in GW veterans. Exposure to sarin and cyclosarin and to oil well fire emissions are also associated with neurologically based health effects, though their contribution to development of the disorder known as GWI is less clear. Gene-environment interactions are likely to have contributed to development of GWI in deployed veterans. The health consequences of chemical exposures in the GW and other conflicts have been called "toxic wounds" by veterans. This type of injury requires further study and concentrated treatment research efforts that may also benefit other occupational groups with similar exposure-related illnesses. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Biological Warfare Agents Bromides Carbamates Chemical Warfare Agents Chemistry Environmental Monitoring Genetics Insecticides Neoplasms Nervous System Nervous System Diseases Nervous System Disorders Occupational Health Organophosphates Safety

  More +
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Gulf War Illness Biological-warfare-agents Biological-weapons Brain-disorders Cancer Central-nervous-system Central-nervous-system-disorders Chemical-properties Chemical-warfare-agents Cyclosarin Etiology Exposure-assessment Genes Medicinal-chemicals Military-personnel Nervous-system-disorders Nervous-system-function Neurological-reactions Neurotoxic-effects Oil-vapors Organo-phosphorus-compounds Organo-phosphorus-pesticides Pesticide Pesticides Prophylaxis Sarin Veterans' Health

  More +
• ISSN:
  0010-9452
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Arizona ; California ; Florida ; Kansas ; Massachusetts ; Michigan ; North Carolina ; OSHA Region 1 ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 4 ; OSHA Region 5 ; OSHA Region 6 ; OSHA Region 7 ; OSHA Region 9 ; South Carolina ; Texas ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  HELD - Health Effects Laboratory Division
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  449-475
• Volume:
  74
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20046987
• Citation:
  Cortex 2016 Jan; 74:449-475
• Contact Point Address:
  Roberta F. White, Department of Environmental Health, Boston University School of Public Health, 715 Albany St., T4W, Boston, MA 02118, United States
• Email:
  rwhite@bu.edu
• CAS Registry Number:
  Cyclosarin (CAS RN 329-99-7) ; Pyridostigmine bromide (CAS RN 101-26-8) ; Sarin (CAS RN 107-44-8)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2016
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  Cortex
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:8f5252ab14248e7653681823827f8325aff6e8791f1d3b1bc7b3f3097b869bbd00f05a0c6d9ac5d5363dfad992b7742920fe58c01c48939cf53ad432f57d5546
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/202231/cdc_202231_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 701.96 KB ]