CNN Headlines Gulf War Syndrome Update

[Felix The Assassin]

I did not fully capture it, and am wondering if anybody else did.

The caption was a *New* relesae about the 'CAUSE' of the effects and the *acknoledgement* (gasp) of all of the NON FDA approved pills we took, the chemical weapons stockpile that we destroyed, and other factors. If anybody has any further "Newer" information could you please post it.

[Chewbacca]

Here is the most recent article from a google news search:


http://www.military.com/NewsContent/...101504,00.html


Vets Have Specific Nervous System Damage
NewsRx.com
October 15, 2004


University of Texas (UT) Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas researchers have uncovered damage in a specific, primitive portion of the nervous systems of veterans suffering from Gulf War syndrome.

UT Southwestern researchers reported that damage to the parasympathetic nervous system may account for nearly half of the typical symptoms - including gallbladder disease, unrefreshing sleep, depression, joint pain, chronic diarrhea and sexual dysfunction - that afflict those with Gulf War syndrome. Their findings are published in the October 2004 issue of the American Journal of Medicine.

"The high rate of gallbladder disease in these men, reported in a previous study, is particularly disturbing because typically women over 40 get this. It's singularly rare in young men," said Dr. Robert Haley, chief of epidemiology at UT Southwestern and lead author of the new study.

The parasympathetic system regulates primitive, automatic bodily functions such as digestion and sleep, while the sympathetic nervous system controls the "fight or flight" instinct.

"They're sort of the mirror image of each other - the yin and the yang of the nervous system - that control functions we are not usually aware of. This is another part of the explanation as to why Gulf War syndrome is so elusive and mysterious," said Haley.

Previously, isolating pure parasympathetic brain function was difficult. In the new study Haley and his colleagues used a technique that monitors changes in approximately 100,000 heartbeats over 24 hours and measures changes in high-frequency heart rate variability - a function solely regulated by the parasympathetic nervous system.

After plotting the subtle changes in heart function using a mathematical technique called spectral analysis, researchers found that parasympathetic brain function, which usually peaks during sleep, barely changed in veterans with Gulf War syndrome even though they appeared to be sleeping. In a group of well veterans tested for comparison, the brain functions increased normally.

"The parasympathetic nervous system takes care of restorative functions of the body. During sleep it's orchestrating that process, which is why we feel refreshed when we wake up," Haley said. "Its failure to increase at night in ill Gulf War veterans may explain their unrefreshing sleep."

The tests were conducted on 40 members of a Naval Reserve construction battalion, also known as Seabees. Both ill and healthy veterans from the same battalion were tested for comparison.

In addition, pure sympathetic nervous system functions were tested. In these tests, there were no appreciable differences between the two groups of veterans.

Haley first described Gulf War syndrome in a series of papers published in January 1997 in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). In previous studies, Haley and his colleagues presented evidence attributing the veterans' illness to low-level exposure to sarin gas - a potent nerve toxin - which drifted over thousands of soldiers when U.S. forces detonated Iraqi chemical stores during and after the Gulf War. A recent report from the Government Accountability Office confirmed that exposure to low-level sarin in the 1991 Gulf War was more frequent and widespread than previously acknowledged.

Subsequent research from Haley's group showed that veterans suffering from Gulf War syndrome also were born with lower levels of a protective blood enzyme called paraoxonase, which usually fights off the toxins found in sarin. Veterans who were in the same area and did not get sick had higher levels of this enzyme.

Haley and his colleagues have closely followed the same group of test subjects since 1995. A new grant from the U.S. Department of Defense will allow Haley's team to undertake a study in a much larger sample of Gulf War veterans.

[Larry_OHF]

http://www.gulfwarvets.com/hot.htm

This seemed to be the best place with the most updated info about the news. The second option on that list had Sep 27th of this year on it, so it is pretty recent. There are other news briefs there that are just as interesting.

[Lucern]

A couple of years ago I read a hypothesis that depleted uranium rounds may be a contributing factor. The conventional wisdom is that they're harmless (to those you're not firing at) if I'm not mistaken. So was asbestos...

In any case it'd be good science to test and remove them as possible contributors. The current conflict will settle it if we don't see a similar syndrome as far as these rounds are concerned.

[Felix The Assassin]

Tanks Chewie, I do believe that is it.

Tanks, Larry, this is one of my saved favorites, but it is not carrying the new article.

Lucern, we have been training DU awareness for quite awhile now. However, we really did not know the effects back then. Unfortunately just about all major weapon systems fire DU, but the risk of exposure is only to the hard target, and the immediate area. Rule of thunb, don't climb around on anything that a A-10 (USAF Tank Killer), Tank(Any US series), or Bradley(IFV) has engaed and or destroyed, and you'll be fine.
My current signature has a high speed capture of an M1A1(120mm) firing an M829A1(service) Depleted Uranium Long Rod Penetrator.

[Timber Loftis]

So was asbestos...

As someone who deals with asbestos on a daily basis, I'd say your comparrison is off by a long way.

[Timber Loftis]

don't climb around on anything that a A-10 (USAF Tank Killer), Tank(Any US series), or Bradley(IFV) has engaed and or destroyed, and you'll be fine.

Sound words of wisdom, all around. If you climb around on US military hardware burning a USA flag, you get what you get.

[Lucern]

Ah, so you're a tanker. I should have gathered that from the photos used in your sigs.

http://home.swipnet.se/tanks/tanks/apfsds.html

Looking at that page makes me aware of how little I know of ballistics and modern weaponry in general, but I believe there's something close to your current round if you scroll a little. If rounds like this were dangerous to so many crews firing them, I suppose that the Gulf War Syndrome would involve characteristics of radiation poisoning or exposure. I'm glad to know that people are being trained to avoid those targets.

As for me, I've only climbed on WW2 tanks in museums - a Wolverine and an M4 Sherman IIRC.

And about the asbestos, I was just looking for something that was determined to be potentially harmful that once was not considered so. You're the professional though, so if you're telling me I'm wrong, I'm listening. Perhaps in 10 years we can put the lo-carb diet here instead lol.

[ 10-16-2004, 02:13 AM: Message edited by: Lucern ]

[Felix The Assassin]

Good link Lucern, I had not seen that one.

Tanker by trade, but for the last years I have been a TWAT, as have most of my brethern. These modern missions call for *motorized* units, same ground pounding stuff as the grunts, but we don't get the cheesy badge!

In essence the author was very sure of his knowledge, but maybe slightly weary of his grasp of the language. One thing I noticed, he did not acknowledge that the LEOII, and the M1A1/2 share the same cannon, ammunition, and characteristics.

The ammo is harmless and has 0 reading while stowed. However, once it has been fired, and penetrated hard armor, something goes awry with the U92 version, hence the DU awareness.

I didn't snoop all of the links, but me tinks, this article was written during the latter part of the 90s, as his thoughts refer to the 140mm. At that time, that was the next step. However, there is *nothing* on the modern battlefield that the 120mm "shotgun" can't penetrate.

[Seraph]

Origionally posted by Felix the Assassin The caption was a *New* relesae about the 'CAUSE' of the effects and the *acknoledgement* (gasp) of all of the NON FDA approved pills we took, the chemical weapons stockpile that we destroyed, and other factors.

Well, one of the theories that I haven't seen a whole lot of goes as follows. AFAIK US troops were issued a number of emergency treatments, including some very powerful (injected) chemicals, incase they were exposed to chemical weapons. During the course of the war they were exposed to a situation that was unhealthy to say the least. The desert isn't a fun place to be in, and it was full of nasty things like oil fires, fighting, blowing up bunkers, and possible exposure to real chemical weapons, and so on. This tended to make soldiers feel like crap, and a fair amount of the time with problems that were similar to nerve gas exposure. The result were that soldiers would then use those powerful drugs, and being Americans they tended to be believers in the theory that "if one is good, two must be better" they would take more then they should (The fact that the first injection would make someone feel even worse probably didn't help). The drugs do a number of things that screw with the nervous system and that the increased dose was capable of doing substantial damage.

Now, I don't know how much of this is really true, but given the biology behind the chemicals I could easily see it being true.

Originally posted by Timber Loftis: quote: So was asbestos...

As someone who deals with asbestos on a daily basis, I'd say your comparrison is off by a long way. [/QUOTE]Well, as someone who deals with asbestos on a daily basis I have to ask why you say that because I think it is a pretty good one.