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''''Gulf War illness (GWI),''' formerly known as '''Gulf War syndrome''' ('''GWS'''), '''Gulf War illnesses,''' and '''chronic multisymptom illness''' ('''CMI'''),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nationalacademies.org/hmd/Reports/2013/Gulf-War-and-HealthTreatment-for-Chronic-Multisymptom-Illness.aspx|title=Gulf War and Health: Treatment for Chronic Multisymptom Illness : Health and Medicine Division|author=|date=|website=www.nationalacademies.org|deadurl=no|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20170511120553/http://www.nationalacademies.org/hmd/Reports/2013/Gulf-War-and-HealthTreatment-for-Chronic-Multisymptom-Illness.aspx|archivedate=2017-05-11|df=}}</ref> is a chronic and multisymptomatic disorder affecting returning military veterans and civilian workers of the 1990–91 [[Gulf War]].<ref name=veteranIllnesses/><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Iversen A, Chalder T, Wessely S |title=Gulf War Illness: lessons from medically unexplained symptoms |journal=Clin Psychol Rev |volume=27 |issue=7 |pages=842–54 |date=October 2007 |pmid=17707114 |doi=10.1016/j.cpr.2007.07.006}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Gronseth GS |title=Gulf war syndrome: a toxic exposure? A systematic review |journal=Neurol Clin |volume=23 |issue=2 |pages=523–40 |date=May 2005 |pmid=15757795 |doi=10.1016/j.ncl.2004.12.011}}</ref> A wide range of acute and chronic symptoms have been linked to it, including [[fatigue (physical)|fatigue]], [[Myalgia|muscle pain]], cognitive problems, rashes and [[diarrhea]].<ref>{{cite web | publisher = [[University of Virginia]] | title = Gulf War Syndrome | url = http://www.healthsystem.virginia.edu/uvahealth/adult_environ/gulf.cfm | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20040714014747/http://www.healthsystem.virginia.edu/UVAHealth/adult_environ/gulf.cfm | dead-url = yes | archive-date = 2004-07-14 | df = }}</ref> Approximately 250,000<ref name="www8.nationalacademies.org">{{cite web | url = http://www8.nationalacademies.org/onpinews/newsitem.aspx?RecordID=12835 | title = Gulf War Service Linked to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Multisymptom Illness, Other Health Problems, But Causes Are Unclear | accessdate = 2012-05-09 | publisher = [[National Academy of Sciences]] | date = 2010-04-09 | last = Stencel | first = C | deadurl = no | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20120314071134/http://www8.nationalacademies.org/onpinews/newsitem.aspx?RecordID=12835 | archivedate = 2012-03-14 | df = }}</ref> of the 697,000 U.S. veterans who served in the 1991 Gulf War are afflicted with enduring chronic multi-symptom illness, a condition with serious consequences.<ref name=FedReport>{{cite web | url = http://www.va.gov/gulfwaradvisorycommittee/docs/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf | format = pdf | title = Gulf War Illness and the Health of Gulf War Veterans: Scientific Findings and Recommendations | author = Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses | accessdate = 2012-05-09 | date = 2008-11-01 | publisher = U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs | deadurl = no | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20131109141703/http://www.va.gov/gulfwaradvisorycommittee/docs/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf | archivedate = 2013-11-09 | df = }}</ref> From 1995 to 2005, the health of combat veterans worsened in comparison with nondeployed veterans, with the onset of more new chronic diseases, functional impairment, repeated clinic visits and hospitalizations, [[chronic fatigue syndrome]]-like illness, [[posttraumatic stress disorder]], and greater persistence of adverse health incidents.<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Li | first1 = B. | last2 = Mahan | first2 = C. M. | last3 = Kang | first3 = H. K. | last4 = Eisen | first4 = S. A. | last5 = Engel | first5 = C. C. | title = Longitudinal Health Study of US 1991 Gulf War Veterans: Changes in Health Status at 10-Year Follow-up | doi = 10.1093/aje/kwr154 | journal = American Journal of Epidemiology | volume = 174 | issue = 7 | pages = 761–768 | year = 2011 | pmid = 21795757 | pmc = }}</ref> According to a report by the [[Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America]], veterans of [[Operation Iraqi Freedom|Iraq]] and [[Operation Enduring Freedom - Afghanistan|Afghanistan]] may also suffer from Gulf War illness.<ref>{{cite news |title=Report: New vets show Gulf War illness symptoms |author=Kelly Kennedy |agency=USA Today |url=http://www.armytimes.com/mobile/news/2013/01/gannett-new-vets-showing-gulf-war-illness-symptoms-012313 |newspaper=Army Times |date=23 January 2013 |accessdate=28 January 2013}}</ref> Suggested causes have included [[organophosphate]] pesticides and chemical warfare agents including [[sarin]] gas, [[pyridostigmine bromide]] (PB) nerve agent protective pills, [[depleted uranium]], [[Kuwaiti oil fires|smoke from burning oil wells]], multiple vaccinations, and combinations of Gulf War exposures. Studies consistently indicate that Gulf War illness is not the result of combat or other stressors and that Gulf War veterans have lower rates of [[posttraumatic stress disorder]] (PTSD) than veterans of other wars.<ref name=FedReport/><ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=https://www.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/RACReport2014Final.pdf|title=Gulf War Illness and the Health of Gulf War Veterans: Research Update and Recommendations, 2009-2013: Updated Scientific Findings and Recommendations|last=Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans’ Illnesses|first=|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office|year=May 2014|isbn=|location=Washington, DC|pages=3; 9-10; 20|agency=U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs}}</ref> ==Classification== Medical ailments associated with service in the 1990-91 Gulf War have been recognized by both the [[United States Department of Defense|U.S. Department of Defense]] and the [[United States Department of Veterans Affairs|U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs]].<ref name=veteranIllnesses>{{cite web | url = http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/gulfwar/associated_illnesses.asp | title = Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses: Illnesses Associated with Gulf War Service | date = nd | accessdate = 2012-05-09 | publisher = United States Department of Veterans Affairs | deadurl = no | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20120212190215/http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/gulfwar/associated_illnesses.asp | archivedate = 2012-02-12 | df = }}</ref> Before 1998, the terms ''Gulf War syndrome, Gulf War veterans' illness, unexplained illness'', and ''undiagnosed illness'' were used interchangeably to describe chronic unexplained symptoms in veterans of the 1991 Gulf War. The term ''chronic multisymptom illness'' (CMI) was first used following publication of a 1998 study<ref name=":2" /> describing chronic unexplained symptoms in Air Force veterans of the 1991 Gulf War.<ref name="iom_p13" /> In a 2014 report contracted by the [[United States Department of Veterans Affairs|U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs]], the [[National Academy of Sciences|National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine]] recommended the use the term ''Gulf War illness'' rather than ''chronic multisymptom illness''.<ref name=":1" /> Since that time, relevant publications by the National Academy of Science and the U.S. Department of Defense have used only the term ''Gulf War illness'' (GWI). The [[U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs]] (VA) confusingly still uses an array of both old and new terminology for ''Gulf War illness''. VA's specialty clinical evaluation [https://www.warrelatedillness.va.gov War Related Illness and Injury Study Centers (WRIISCs)] use the recommended term ''Gulf War illness'',[https://www.warrelatedillness.va.gov/WARRELATEDILLNESS/education/factsheets/gulf-war-illness-for-veterans.pdf] as do VA's Office of Research and Development (VA-ORD) and many recent VA research publications.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.research.va.gov/currents/1017-Evidence-of-DNA-damage-in-Vets-with-Gulf-War-illness.cfm|title=Researchers find evidence of DNA damage in Vets with Gulf War illness|last=U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Research and Development|first=|date=2017-10-19|website=|access-date=}}</ref> However, VA's Public Health website still uses ''Gulf War veterans' medically unexplained illnesses''[https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/gulfwar/medically-unexplained-illness.asp], ''medically unexplained illnesses'', ''chronic multi-symptom illness'' (CMI), and ''undiagnosed illnesses'', but explains that VA doesn't use the term ''Gulf War syndrome'' because of varying symptoms.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/gulfwar/medically-unexplained-illness.asp|title=Gulf War Veterans’ Medically Unexplained Illnesses - Public Health|last=Administration|first=US Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health|date=|website=www.publichealth.va.gov|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140224112435/http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/gulfwar/medically-unexplained-illness.asp|archivedate=2014-02-24|deadurl=no|df=}}</ref> The [[Veterans Health Administration]] (VHA) originally classified individuals with related ailments believed to be connected to their service in the Persian Gulf a special non-ICD-9 code DX111, as well as ICD-9 code V65.5.<ref>{{cite web| author=Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Health Initiative | url = http://www.hanford.gov/hanford/files/VA_GuidetoGulfWarVeteransHealth.pdf|title= A Guide to Gulf War Veterans' Health | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20060926215559/http://www.hanford.gov/hanford/files/VA_GuidetoGulfWarVeteransHealth.pdf | archivedate = 2006-09-26 | year = 2002}}</ref> ==Signs and symptoms== [[File:DesertStormMap v2.svg|thumb|right|350px|Summary of the [[Operation Desert Storm]] offensive ground campaign, February 24–28, 1991, by nationality]] According to an April 2010 U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) sponsored study conducted by the Institute of Medicine (IOM), part of the U.S. [[United States National Academy of Sciences|National Academy of Sciences]], 250,000<ref name="www8.nationalacademies.org"/> of the 696,842 U.S. servicemen and women in the 1991 Gulf War continue to suffer from chronic multi-symptom illness, which the IOM now refers to as ''Gulf War illness''. The IOM found that it continued to affect these veterans nearly 20 years after the war. According to the IOM, "It is clear that a significant portion of the soldiers deployed to the Gulf War have experienced troubling constellations of symptoms that are difficult to categorize," said committee chair Stephen L. Hauser, professor and chair, department of neurology, [[University of California, San Francisco]] (UCSF). "Unfortunately, symptoms that cannot be easily quantified are sometimes incorrectly dismissed as insignificant and receive inadequate attention and funding by the medical and scientific establishment. Veterans who continue to suffer from these symptoms deserve the very best that modern science and medicine can offer to speed the development of effective treatments, cures, and—we hope—prevention. Our report suggests a path forward to accomplish this goal, and we believe that through a concerted national effort and rigorous scientific input, answers can be found."<ref name="www8.nationalacademies.org"/> Questions still exist regarding why certain veterans showed, and still show, medically unexplained symptoms while others did not, why symptoms are diverse in some and specific in others, and why combat exposure is not consistently linked to having or not having symptoms. The lack of data on veterans' pre-deployment and immediate post-deployment health status and lack of measurement and monitoring of the various substances to which veterans may have been exposed make it difficult—and in many cases impossible—to reconstruct what happened to service members during their deployments nearly 20 years after the fact, the committee noted.<ref name="www8.nationalacademies.org"/> The report called for a substantial commitment to improving identification and treatment of multisymptom illness in Gulf War veterans focussing on continued monitoring of Gulf War veterans, improved medical care, examination of genetic differences between symptomatic and asymptomatic groups and studies of environment-gene interactions.<ref name="www8.nationalacademies.org"/> A variety of signs and symptoms have been associated with GWI: {|class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:97%; text-align:right;" |+Excess prevalence of general [[symptom]]s<ref>{{harvnb|RAC-GWVI Minutes|2005|p=70}}, ''This table applies only to coalition forces involved in [[combat]].''</ref>'''*''' !width="200px"| Symptom !width="50px"| U.S. !width="50px"| UK !width="75px"| Australia !width="75px"| Denmark |- |align="left"|Fatigue||23%||23%||10%||16% |- |align="left"|Headache||17%||18%||7%||13% |- |align="left"|Memory problems||32%||28%||12%||23% |- |align="left"|Muscle/joint pain||18%||17%||5%||2% (<2%) |- |align="left"|Diarrhea||16%|| ||9%||13% |- |align="left"|Dyspepsia/indigestion||12%|| ||5%||9% |- |align="left"|Neurological problems||16%|| ||8%||12% |- |align="left"|Terminal tumors||33%|| ||9%||11% |} {|class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:97%; text-align:right;" |+Excess prevalence of recognized medical conditions<ref>{{harvnb|RAC-GWVI Minutes|2005|p=71}}</ref> !width="200px"| Condition !width="50px"| U.S. !width="50px"| UK !width="75px"| Canada !width="75px"| Australia |- |align="left"|Skin conditions |{{sort|20|20–21%}} ||21% ||{{sort|04|4–7%}} ||4% |- |align="left"|Arthritis/joint problems |{{sort|06|6–11%}} ||10% ||{{sort|0|(-1)–3%}} ||2% |- |align="left"|Gastro-intestinal (GI) problems |{{sort|15|15%}} || ||{{sort|05|5–7%}} ||1% |- |align="left"|Respiratory problem |{{sort|04|4–7%}} ||2% ||{{sort|02|2–5%}} ||1% |- |align="left"|Chronic fatigue syndrome |{{sort|01|1–4%}} ||3% || ||0% |- |align="left"|Post-traumatic stress disorder |{{sort|02|2–6%}} ||9% ||{{sort|06|6%}} ||3% |- |align="left"|Chronic multi-symptom illness |{{sort|13|13–25%}} ||26% || || |} Birth defects have been suggested as a consequence of Gulf War deployment. However, a 2006 review of several studies of international coalition veterans' children found no strong or consistent evidence of an increase in birth defects, finding a modest increase in birth defects that was within the range of the general population, in addition to being unable to exclude [[recall bias]] as an explanation for the results.<ref name="DoyleReview">{{Cite journal | last1 = Doyle | first1 = P. | last2 = MacOnochie | first2 = N. | last3 = Ryan | first3 = M. | doi = 10.1098/rstb.2006.1817 | title = Reproductive health of Gulf War veterans | journal = Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences | volume = 361 | issue = 1468 | pages = 571–584 | year = 2006 | pmid = 16687262 | pmc =1569619 }}</ref> A 2008 report stated that "it is difficult to draw firm conclusions related to birth defects and pregnancy outcomes in Gulf War veterans", observing that while there have been "significant, but modest, excess rates of birth defects in children of Gulf War veterans", the "overall rates are still within the normal range found in the general population".<ref name=GWV_08_p50>{{Citation|year=2008|title=Gulf War Illness and the Health of Gulf War Veterans, Scientific Findings and Recommendations|publisher=U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs|page=50 (p. 60 in PDF)|url=http://www.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|deadurl=no|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140603002651/http://www1.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|archivedate=2014-06-03|df=}}</ref> The same report called for more research on the issue. ==Causes== The [[United States Congress]] mandated the [[United States Department of Veterans Affairs|U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs]] contract with the [[National Academies of Science|National Academy of Science]]<nowiki/>s (NAS) to provide reports on Gulf War illnesses. Since 1998, the NAS's Institute of Medicine (IOM) has authored ten such reports.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/gulfwar/announcement.asp|title=Page Not Found - Public Health|author=|date=|website=www.publichealth.va.gov|deadurl=no|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20091218093021/http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/gulfwar/announcement.asp|archivedate=2009-12-18|df=}}</ref> In addition to the many physical and psychological issues involving any war zone deployment, Gulf War veterans were exposed to a unique mix of hazards not previously experienced during wartime. These included [[pyridostigmine bromide]] pills (given to protect troops from the effects of nerve agents), depleted uranium munitions, and multiple simultaneous vaccinations including [[anthrax vaccine|anthrax]] and [[botulinum]] vaccines. The oil and smoke that spewed for months from hundreds of burning oil wells presented another exposure hazard not previously encountered in a war zone. Military personnel also had to cope with swarms of insects, requiring the widespread use of pesticides. High-powered microwaves were used to disrupt Iraqi communications, and though it is unknown whether this might have contributed to the syndrome, research has suggested that safety limits for electromagnetic radiation are too lenient.<ref>[http://www.veterans.senate.gov/hearings.cfm?action=release.display&release_id=a22ac85f-bc73-435f-b78b-3b107a51cf87 Gulf War Illnesses] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130227190650/http://veterans.senate.gov/hearings.cfm?action=release.display&release_id=a22ac85f-bc73-435f-b78b-3b107a51cf87 |date=2013-02-27 }}, Testimony to the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee by Meryl Nass, MD on September 25, 2007</ref> United States Veterans Affairs Secretary [[Anthony Principi]]'s panel found that pre-2005 studies suggested the veterans' illnesses are neurological and apparently are linked to exposure to [[neurotoxin]]s, such as the nerve gas sarin, the anti-nerve gas drug [[pyridostigmine bromide]], and [[pesticide]]s that affect the nervous system. The review committee concluded that, "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."<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/ReportandRecommendations_ScientificProgressinUnderstandingGWVI_2004.pdf | author = Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses | format = pdf | date = September 2004 | title = Scientific Progress in Understanding Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses: Report and Recommendations | publisher = United States Department of Veterans Affairs | accessdate = 2012-05-09 | deadurl = no | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20120319024036/http://www.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/ReportandRecommendations_ScientificProgressinUnderstandingGWVI_2004.pdf | archivedate = 2012-03-19 | df = }}</ref> ===Probable Causes=== ====Pyridostigmine bromide nerve gas antidote==== The US military issued [[pyridostigmine bromide]] (PB) pills to protect against exposure to nerve gas agents such as sarin and [[soman]]. PB was used as a [[prophylactic]] against nerve agents; it is not a vaccine. Taken before exposure to nerve agents, PB was thought to increase the efficiency of nerve agent antidotes. PB had been used since 1955 for patients suffering from [[myasthenia gravis]] with doses up to 1,500&nbsp;mg a day, far in excess of the 90&nbsp;mg given to soldiers, and was considered safe by the FDA at either level for indefinite use and its use to pre-treat nerve agent exposure had recently been approved.<ref>{{cite news | publisher = PBS Frontline | accessdate = 2012-05-09 | date = 1996-12-01 | url = https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/syndrome/analysis/pyribrom.html | title = Pyridostigmine bromide use in the First Gulf War | deadurl = no | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20121112142950/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/syndrome/analysis/pyribrom.html | archivedate = 2012-11-12 | df = }}</ref> Given both the large body of epidemiological data on myasthenia gravis patients and follow-up studies done on veterans it was concluded that while it was unlikely that health effects reported today by Gulf War veterans are the result of exposure solely to PB, use of PB was [[Causality|causally associated]] with illness.<ref name=FedReport/> However, a later review by the [[Institute of Medicine]] concluded that the evidence was not strong enough to establish a causal relationship.<ref name="iom_p13">{{cite book | pages = [http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=13539&page=13 13] | author = Committee on Gulf War and Health: Treatment for Chronic Multisymptom Illness; Board on the Health of Select Populations; Institute of Medicine | title = Gulf War and Health: Treatment for Chronic Multisymptom Illness ( 2013 ) | publisher = [[National Academies Press]] }}</ref> ==== Organophosphates ==== [[Organophosphate-induced delayed neuropathy]] (OPIDN, aka organophosphate-induced delayed polyneuropathy) may contribute to the unexplained ilnesses of the Gulf War veterans.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/pharmacology-toxicology-and-pharmaceutical-science/organophosphate-induced-delayed-neuropathy |title=Archived copy |accessdate=2018-03-29 |deadurl=no |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180512143556/https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/pharmacology-toxicology-and-pharmaceutical-science/organophosphate-induced-delayed-neuropathy |archivedate=2018-05-12 |df= }}{{full}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/j.jns.2017.08.451 |pmid=28991670 |title=New insights into the organophosphate-induced delayed neuropathy |journal=Journal of the Neurological Sciences |volume=381 |pages=153–159 |year=2017 |last1=Qiang |first1=D |last2=Xie |first2=X |last3=Gao |first3=Z }}</ref> ===== Organophosphate pesticides ===== The use of [[organophosphate]] [[pesticides]] and [[DEET|insect repellents]] during the first Gulf War is credited with keeping rates of pest-borne diseases low. Pesticide use is one of only two exposures consistently identified by Gulf War epidemiologic studies to be significantly associated with Gulf War illness.<ref>{{cite book | publisher = [[United States Department of Defense]] | author = Office of the Special Assistant to the Undersecretary of Defense (Personnel and Readiness) for Gulf War Illnesses Medical Readiness and Military Deployments | title = Environmental Exposure Report: Pesticides Final Report | location = Washington, D.C. | date = 2003-04-17 }}</ref> Multisymptom illness profiles similar to Gulf War illness have been associated with low-level pesticide exposures in other human populations. In addition, Gulf War studies have identified dose-response effects, indicating that greater pesticide use is more strongly associated with Gulf War illness than more limited use.<ref name=":2">{{cite book | last = Krengel | first = M | author2 = Sullivan K | title = Neuropsychological Functioning in Gulf War Veterans Exposed to Pesticides and Pyridostigmine Bromide | location = Fort Detrick, MD | publisher = U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command | date = 2008-08-01 | url = http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA491742 | accessdate = 2012-05-09 | deadurl = no | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20130408132243/http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA491742 | archivedate = 2013-04-08 | df = }} W81XWH-04-1-0118</ref> Pesticide use during the Gulf War has also been associated with [[neurocognitive]] deficits and [[neuroendocrine]] alterations in Gulf War veterans in clinical studies conducted following the end of the war. The 2008 report concluded that "all available sources of evidence combine to support a consistent and compelling case that pesticide use during the Gulf War is causally associated with Gulf War illness."<ref name=FedReport/> ===== Sarin nerve agent ===== {{see also|Iraqi chemical weapons program}} [[File:Iraq-gwi-map.jpg|right]] Many of the symptoms of Gulf War syndrome are similar to the symptoms of organophosphate, [[mustard gas]], and [[nerve gas]] poisoning.<ref name=Friis>{{cite book |title=Epidemiology for Public Health Practice |last=Friis |first=Robert H. |author2=Thomas A. Sellers |year=2004 |publisher=Jones & Bartlett Publishers |isbn=0-7637-3170-6 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=A Review of the Scientific Literature as it Pertains to Gulf War Illnesses |last=Spektor |first=Dalia M. |author2=Richard A. Rettig |author3=Lee H. Hilborne |author4=Beatrice Alexandra Golomb |author5=Grant N. Marshall |author6=L. M. Davis |author7=Cathy Donald Sherbourne |author8=Naomi H. Harley |author9=William S. Augerson |author10=Gary Cecchine |author11=United States Dept. of Defense |year=1998 |publisher = [[RAND Corporation]] |isbn=0-8330-2680-1 }}</ref> Gulf War veterans were exposed to a number of sources of these compounds, including nerve gas and [[pesticide]]s.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.scotsman.com/news/uk/campaigners_hail_nerve_gas_link_to_gulf_war_syndrome_1_1046500 |title=Campaigners hail 'nerve gas link' to Gulf War Syndrome |publisher=News.scotsman.com |accessdate=November 24, 2009 |location=Edinburgh |date=November 13, 2004 |deadurl=no |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120213230705/http://www.scotsman.com/news/uk/campaigners_hail_nerve_gas_link_to_gulf_war_syndrome_1_1046500 |archivedate=February 13, 2012 |df= }}</ref> Chemical detection units from Czechoslovakia, France, and Britain confirmed chemical agents. French detection units detected chemical agents. Both Czech and French forces reported detections immediately to U.S. forces. U.S. forces detected, confirmed, and reported chemical agents; and U.S. soldiers were awarded medals for detecting chemical agents. The [[Riegle Report]] said that chemical alarms went off 18,000 times during the Gulf War. After the air war started on January 16, 1991, coalition forces were chronically exposed to low but nonlethal levels of chemical and biological agents released primarily by direct Iraqi attack via [[missile]]s, [[rocket]]s, [[artillery]], or aircraft [[munitions]] and by fallout from allied bombings of Iraqi chemical warfare munitions facilities.<ref>{{citation | title = U.S. Chemical and Biological Warfare-Related Dual Use Exports to Iraq and their Possible Impact on the Health Consequences of the Gulf War | date = 1994-02-09 | accessdate = 2012-05-09 | last = Riegle | first = D. W. | authorlink = Donald W. Riegle, Jr. | url = http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Riegle_Report | publisher = [[Wikisource]] | deadurl = no | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20120706211735/http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Riegle_Report | archivedate = 2012-07-06 | df = }}</ref> In 1997, the US Government released an unclassified report that stated: : "The [[US Intelligence Community]] (IC) has assessed that Iraq did not use chemical weapons during the Gulf war. However, based on a comprehensive review of intelligence information and relevant information made available by the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM), we conclude that chemical warfare (CW) agent was released as a result of US postwar demolition of rockets with chemical warheads in a bunker (called Bunker 73 by Iraq) and a pit in an area known as Khamisiyah."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fas.org/irp/gulf/cia/970409/cia_wp.html |title=Khamisiyah: A Historical Perspective on Related Intelligence |author=Persian Gulf War Illnesses Task Force |date=April 9, 1997 |accessdate=March 29, 2015 |publisher=[[Federation of American Scientists]] |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130722221240/https://fas.org/irp/gulf/cia/970409/cia_wp.html |archivedate=July 22, 2013 }}</ref> Over 125,000 U.S. troops and 9,000 UK troops were exposed to nerve gas and [[mustard gas]] when the Iraqi depot in Khamisiyah was destroyed.{{citation needed|date=March 2015}} Recent studies have confirmed earlier suspicions that exposure to sarin, in combination with other contaminants such as pesticides and PB were related to reports of veteran illness. Estimates range from 100,000 to 300,000 individuals exposed to nerve agents.<ref name=Golomb08>{{cite journal |author=Golomb BA |title=Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors and Gulf War illnesses |journal=Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. |volume=105 |issue=11 |pages=4295–300 |date=March 2008 |pmid=18332428 |pmc=2393741 |doi=10.1073/pnas.0711986105}}</ref> While low-level exposure to nerve agents has been suggested as the cause of GWI, the 2008 report by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Illnesses (RAC) stated that "evidence is inconsistent or limited in important ways".<ref name = RAC11/>. The VA's 2014 RAC report concluded that, "exposure to the nerve gas agents sarin/cyclosarin has been linked in two more studies to changes in structural magnetic resonance imaging findings that are associated with cognitive decrements, further supporting the conclusion from evidence reviewed in the 2008 report that exposure to these agents is etiologically important to the central nervous system dysfunction that occurs in some subsets of Gulf War veterans."<ref name=":0" /> ===Less Likely Causes=== According to the VA's 2008 RAC report, "For several Gulf War exposures, an association with Gulf War illness cannot be ruled out. These include low-level exposure to nerve agents, close proximity to oil well fires, receipt of multiple vaccines, and effects of combinations of Gulf War exposures." However, several potential causes of GWI were deemed, "not likely to have caused Gulf War illness for the majority of ill veterans," including "depleted uranium, anthrax vaccine, fuels, solvents, sand and particulates, infectious diseases, and chemical agent resistant coating (CARC)," for which "there is little evidence supporting an association with Gulf War illness or a major role is unlikely based on what is known about exposure patterns during the Gulf War and more recent deployments."<ref name="RAC11">{{Citation|last=Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs|first=|title=Gulf War Illness and the Health of Gulf War Veterans: Scientific Findings and Recommendations|url=http://www.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|volume=|page=1|pages=|df=|year=2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140603002651/http://www1.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|deadurl=no|publication-place=Washington, DC|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office|archivedate=2014-06-03}}</ref> The VA's 2014 RAC report reinforced its 2008 report findings: "The research reviewed in this report supports and reinforces the conclusion in the 2008 RACGWVI report that exposures to pesticides and pyridostigmine bromide are causally associated with Gulf War illness. Evidence also continues to demonstrate that Gulf War illness is not the result of psychological stressors during the war." It also found additional evidence since the 2008 report for the role of [[sarin]] in GWI, but inadequate evidence regarding exposures to oil well fires, vaccines, and depleted uranium to make new conclusions about them.<ref name=":0" /> ====Oil well fires==== During the war, many [[Kuwaiti oil fires|oil wells were set on fire in Kuwait]] by the retreating Iraqi army, and the smoke from those fires was inhaled by large numbers of soldiers, many of whom suffered acute [[pulmonary]] and other chronic effects, including [[asthma]] and [[bronchitis]]. However, firefighters who were assigned to the oil well fires and encountered the smoke, but who did not take part in combat, have not had GWI symptoms.<ref>{{harvnb|RAC-GWVI Minutes|2005|pp=148,154,156}}</ref> The 2008 RAC report states that "evidence [linking oil well fires to GWI] is inconsistent or limited in important ways".<ref name="RAC11" /> ====Depleted uranium==== [[File:GWI DU map.gif|thumb|right|350px|Major Gulf War engagements in which DU rounds were used.]] [[Depleted uranium]] (DU) was widely used in tank [[kinetic energy penetrator]] and [[autocannon]] [[Shell (projectile)|rounds]] for the first time ever during the Gulf War<ref name="Globalsecurity">{{cite web | title = Depleted Uranium | publisher = GlobalSecurity.org | url = http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/munitions/du.htm | date = nd | accessdate = 2012-05-09 | deadurl = no | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20120119045145/http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/munitions/du.htm | archivedate = 2012-01-19 | df = }}</ref> and has been suggested as a possible cause of Gulf War syndrome.<ref name="Jiang">{{Cite journal | doi = 10.1385/BTER:110:1:1 | last1 = Jiang | first1 = G. C. | last2 = Aschner | first2 = M. | title = Neurotoxicity of depleted uranium: Reasons for increased concern | journal = Biological trace element research | volume = 110 | issue = 1 | pages = 1–17 | year = 2006 | pmid = 16679544}}</ref> A 2008 review by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs found no association between DU exposure and multisymptom illness, concluding that "exposure to DU munitions is not likely a primary cause of Gulf War illness". However, there are suggestions that long-term exposure to high doses of DU may cause other health problems unrelated to GWI.<ref name="FedReport" /> In the [[Balkans]] war zone depleted uranium was also used; however, no GWI-like symptoms or illnesses have been identified. This is seen as evidence of DU munitions' safety.<ref name="Globalsecurity" /> While depleted uranium from [[Fragmentation (weaponry)|shrapnel]] fragments has been shown to move into [[Central nervous system|neurological tissues]], this has not been linked to any adverse effects and comparisons between veterans with embedded DU fragments and those without have not found any consistent differences. A group of veterans with high levels of uranium in their [[urine]] from embedded particles have been monitored for any adverse health effects of these particles dissolving, and no such effects have been identified.<ref name="Friedl">{{Cite journal | last1 = Friedl | first1 = K. E. | last2 = Grate | first2 = S. J. | last3 = Proctor | first3 = S. P. | title = Neuropsychological issues in military deployments: Lessons observed in the DoD Gulf War Illnesses Research Program | journal = Military medicine | volume = 174 | issue = 4 | pages = 335–346 | year = 2009 | pmid = 19485101}}</ref> ====Anthrax vaccine==== Iraq had loaded anthrax, [[botulinum|botulinum toxin]], and [[aflatoxin]] into [[scud|missiles]] and artillery shells in preparing for the Gulf War and these munitions were deployed to four locations in Iraq.<ref>{{cite book | first = AH | last = Cordesman | title = Iraq and the War of Sanctions: Conventional Threats and Weapons of Mass Destruction | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=qFCkQRQApSwC | year = 1999 | publisher = [[Greenwood Publishing Group]] | isbn = 978-0-275-96528-0}}</ref> During Operation Desert Storm, 41% of U.S. combat soldiers and 75% of UK combat soldiers were vaccinated against anthrax.<ref>{{harvnb|RAC-GWVI Minutes|2005|p=73}}</ref> Reactions included local skin irritation, some lasting for weeks or months.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d0192t.pdf | last = Chan | first = KC | date = 2000-10-11 | accessdate = 2012-05-09 | format = pdf | title = GAO-01-92T Anthrax Vaccine: Preliminary Results of GAO's Survey of Guard/Reserve Pilots and Aircrew Members | publisher = [[Government Accountability Office]] | deadurl = no | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20120406120022/http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d0192t.pdf | archivedate = 2012-04-06 | df = }}</ref> While the [[Food and Drug Administration]] (FDA) approved the vaccine, it never went through large-scale clinical trials.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.gulfwarvets.com/anthrax11.htm | date = 2001-05-16 | title = Expert: Anthrax vaccine not proven | last = Burdeau | first = C | work = [[The Clarion-Ledger]] | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20011107182429/http://www.gulfwarvets.com/anthrax11.htm | archivedate = 2001-11-07 }} (original [http://orig.clarionledger.com/news/0105/16/m11.html Clarion Ledger] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.is/20120712043354/http://orig.clarionledger.com/news/0105/16/m11.html |date=2012-07-12 }} link is dead)</ref> While recent studies have demonstrated the vaccine is highly [[Reactogenicity|reactogenic]],<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=McNeil MM, Chiang IS, Wheeling JT, Zhang Y |title=Short-term reactogenicity and gender effect of anthrax vaccine: analysis of a 1967–1972 study and review of the 1955–2005 medical literature |journal=Pharmacoepidemiol Drug Saf |volume=16 |issue=3 |pages=259–74 |date=March 2007 |pmid=17245803 |doi=10.1002/pds.1359 }}</ref> and causes motor neuron death in mice,<ref>{{cite journal | author= Petrik, Michael| title=Aluminum adjuvant linked to gulf war illness induces motor neuron death in mice| journal=Neuromolecular medicine| volume=9| issue=1| pages=83–100|date=February 2007 |doi=10.1385/NMM:9:1:83|pmid=17114826|display-authors=etal}}</ref> there is no clear evidence or epidemiological studies on Gulf War veterans linking the vaccine to Gulf War Syndrome. Combining this with the lack of symptoms from current deployments of individuals who have received the vaccine led the Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses to conclude that the vaccine is not a likely cause of Gulf War illness for most ill veterans.<ref name="FedReport" /> However, the committee report does point out that veterans who received a larger number of various vaccines in advance of deployment have shown higher rates of persistent symptoms since the war.<ref name="RAC123">{{Citation|year=2008|title=Gulf War Illness and the Health of Gulf War Veterans, Scientific Findings and Recommendations|publisher=U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs|page=123 (p.133 in PDF)|url=http://www.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|deadurl=no|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140603002651/http://www1.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|archivedate=2014-06-03|df=}}</ref><ref name="FedReport" /> ====Combat stress==== 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, according to a [[U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs]] (VA) review committee. An April 2010 Institute of Medicine review found, "the excess of unexplained medical symptoms reported by deployed [1991] Gulf war veterans cannot be reliably ascribed to any known psychiatric disorder",<ref name="books.nap.edu">{{cite book|title=Gulf War and Health: Volume 8: Update of Health Effects of Serving in the Gulf War|author=Committee on Gulf War and Health: Health Effects of Serving in the Gulf War, Update 2009; Board on the Health of Select Populations; Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences|first=|publisher=[[National Academies Press]]|year=2010|isbn=978-0-309-14921-1|location=Washington, DC|pages=[http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12835&page=109 109]}}</ref> although they also concluded that "the constellation of unexplained symptoms associated with the Gulf War illness complex could result from interplay between both biological and psychological factors."<ref name="books.nap.edu_260">{{cite book | pages = [http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12835&page=260 260] | author = Committee on Gulf War and Health: Health Effects of Serving in the Gulf War | title = Gulf War and Health, Volume 8 - Update of Health Effects of Serving in the Gulf War | publisher = [[National Academies Press]] }}</ref> ==Prevalence== The 2008 and 2014 VA (RAC) reports and the 2010 IOM report found that the chronic multisymptom illness in Gulf War veterans -- Gulf War illness -- is more prevalent in Gulf War veterans than their non-deployed counterparts or veterans of previous conflicts.<ref name="FedReport" /><ref name=":0" /><ref name="books.nap.edu" /> While a 2009 study found the pattern of comorbidities similar for actively deployed and nondeployed Australian military personnel, the large body of U.S. research reviewed in the VA and IOM reports showed the opposite in U.S. troops.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Kelsall | first1 = H. L.|name-list-format=vanc| last2 = McKenzie | year = 2009 | first2 = DP | last3 = Sim | first3 = MR | last4 = Leder | first4 = K | last5 = Forbes | first5 = AB | last6 = Dwyer | first6 = T | title = Physical, psychological, and functional comorbidities of multisymptom illness in Australian male veterans of the 1991 Gulf War | journal = Am J Epidemiol | volume = 170 | issue = 8| pages = 1048–56 | pmid = 19762370 | doi=10.1093/aje/kwp238}}</ref> The VA's 2014 RAC report found Gulf War illness in "an excess of 26 – 32 percent of Gulf War veterans compared to nondeployed era veterans" in pre-2008 studies, and "an overall multisymptom illness prevalence of 37 percent in Gulf War veterans and an excess prevalence of 25 percent" in a later, larger VA study.<ref name=":0" /> According to a May 2018 report by the [[United States Department of Defense|U.S. Department of Defense]], "GWI is estimated to have affected 175,000 to 250,000 of the nearly 700,000 troops deployed to the 1990-91 GW theater of operations. Twenty-seven of the 28 Coalition members participating in the GW conflict have reported GWI in their troops. Epidemiologic studies indicate that rates of GWI vary in different subgroups of GW Veterans. GWI affects Veterans who served in the U.S. Army and Marines Corps at higher rates than those who served in the Navy and Air Force, and U.S. enlisted personnel are affected more than officers. Studies also indicate that GWI rates differ according to where Veterans were located during deployment, with the highest rates among troops who served in forward areas."<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|url=http://cdmrp.army.mil/gwirp/pdfs/GWIRP_Landscape.pdf|title=The Gulf War Illness Landscape|last=Gulf War Illness Research Program, Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program, U.S. Department of Defense|first=|date=May 2018|website=|access-date=2018-07-11}}</ref> == Diagnosis == Clinical diagnosis of Gulf War illness has been complicated by multiple case definitions. In 2014, the [[National Academy of Sciences]] [[Institute Of Medicine|Institute of Medicine]] (IOM) -- contracted by the [[United States Department of Veterans Affairs|U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs]] for the task -- released a report concluding that the creation of a new [[Clinical case definition|case definition]] for chronic multisymptom illness in Gulf War veterans was not possible because of insufficient evidence in published studies regarding its onset, duration, severity, frequency of symptoms, exclusionary criteria, and laboratory findings. Instead, the report recommended the use of two case definitions, the "Kansas" definition and the "Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)" definition, noting: "There is a set of symptoms (fatigue, pain, [[neurocognitive]]) that are reported in all the studies that have been reviewed. The CDC definition captures those three symptoms; the Kansas definition also captures them, but it also includes the symptoms reported most frequently by Gulf War veterans."<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/880456748|title=Chronic multisymptom illness in Gulf War veterans: case definitions reexamined|last=National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Medicine. Committee on the Development of a Consensus Case Definition for Chronic Multisymptom illness in 1990-1991 Gulf War Veterans|first=|publisher=National Academies Press|year=2014|isbn=9780309298773|location=Washington, D.C.|pages=90-99|oclc=880456748}}</ref> The Kansas case definition is more specific and may be more applicable for research settings, while the CDC case definition is more broad and may be more applicable for clinical settings.<ref name=":1" /> === Kansas Definition === In 1998, the State of Kansas Persian Gulf Veterans Health Initiative sponsored an epidemiological survey led by [https://www.bcm.edu/people/view/lea-steele-ph-d/20778c56-71c3-11e5-b8c7-005056b104be Dr. Lea Steele] of deployment-related symptoms in 2,030 Gulf War veterans. The result was a "clinically based descriptive definition using correlated symptoms" in six symptom groups: fatigue and sleep problems, pain, neurologic and mood, gastrointestinal, respiratory symptoms, and skin (dermatologic) symptoms.<ref name=":1" /> To meet the "Kansas" case definition, a veteran of the 1990-91 Gulf War must have symptoms in at least three of the six symptom domains, which during the survey were scored based on severity ("severity"). Symptom onset must have developed during or after deploying to the 1990-91 Gulf War theatre of operations ("onset") and must have been present in the year before interview ("duration"). Participants were excluded if they had a diagnosis of or were being treated for any of several conditions that might otherwise explain their symptoms ("exclusionary criteria"), including cancer, diabetes, heart disease, chronic infectious disease, lupus, multiple sclerosis, stroke, or any serious psychiatric condition.<ref name=":1" /> Applying the Kansas case definition to the original Kansas study cohort resulted in a prevalence of Gulf War illness of 34.2% in Gulf War veterans and 8.3% in nondeployed Gulf War era veterans, or an excess rate of GWI of 26.3% in Gulf War veterans.<ref name=":1" /> === CDC Definition === Also in 1998, a study published by [https://naturemicrobiologycommunity.nature.com/users/8233-nonia-pariente/posts/29274-snapshot-keiji-fukuda Dr. Keiji Fukuda] under the auspices of the [[U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]] (CDC) examined chronic multisymptom illness through a cross-sectional survey of 3,675 ill and healthy [[United States Air Force|U.S. Air Force]] veterans of the 1990-91 Gulf War, including from a [[Pennsylvania]]-based [[Air National Guard]] unit and three comparison Air Force units. The CDC case definition was derived from clinical data and [[statistical analyses]].<ref name=":1" /> The result was a symptom-category approach to a case definition, with three symptom categories: fatigue, mood–cognition, and musculoskeletal. To meet the case definition, the veteran of the 1990-91 Gulf War must have symptoms in two of the three categories and have experienced the illness for six months or longer ("duration").<ref name=":1" /> The original study also including a determination of severity of symptoms ("severity"). "Severe cases were identified if at least one symptom in each of the required categories was rated as severe. Of 1,155 participating Gulf War veterans, 6% had severe CMI, and 39% had mild to moderate CMI; of the 2,520 nondeployed era veterans Of 1,155 participating Gulf War veterans, 6% had severe CMI, and 39% had mild to moderate CMI; of the 2,520 nondeployed era veterans, 0.7% had severe and 14% had mild to moderate CMI."<ref name=":1" /> == Pathobiology == ===Chronic inflammation=== The 2008 VA report on ''Gulf War Illness and the Health of Gulf War Veterans'' suggested a possible link between GWI and [[Chronic (medicine)|chronic]], nonspecific [[inflammation]] of the [[central nervous system]] that cause pain, fatigue and memory issues, possibly due to pathologically persistent increases in [[cytokine]]s and suggested further research be conducted on this issue.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.fight4vets.com/va-benefits-for-gulf-war-syndrome/|title=VA Benefits for Gulf War Syndrome|work=fight4vets|accessdate=25 July 2016|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160819104709/http://www.fight4vets.com/va-benefits-for-gulf-war-syndrome/|archivedate=19 August 2016|deadurl=no|df=}}</ref> ==Treatment== A 2013 report by the [[Institute of Medicine]] reviewed the peer-reviewed published medical literature for evidence regarding treatments for symptoms associated with ''chronic multisympton illness'' (CMI) in 1990-91 Gulf War veterans, and in other chronic multisymptom conditions. For the studies the report reviewed that were specifically regarding CMI in 1990-91 Gulf War veterans (''Gulf War illness''), the report made the following conclusions:<ref name="iom_p13" /> * Doxycycline: "Although the study of doxycycline was found to have high strength of evidence and was conducted in a group of 1991 Gulf War veterans who had CMI, it did not demonstrate efficacy; that is, doxycycline did not reduce or eliminate the symptoms of CMI in the study population." * Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Exercise: "These studies evaluated the effects of exercise and CBT in combination and individually. The therapeutic benefit of exercise was unclear in those studies. Group CBT rather than exercise may confer the main therapeutic benefit with respect to physical symptoms." The report concluded: "On the basis of the evidence reviewed, the committee cannot recommend any specific therapy as a set treatment for [Gulf War] veterans who have CMI. The committee believes that a 'one-size-fits-all' approach is not effective for managing [Gulf War] veterans who have CMI and that individualized health care management plans are necessary."<ref name="iom_p13" /> By contrast, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) noted in a May 2018 publication that the primary focus of its Gulf War Illness Research Program ([http://cdmrp.army.mil/gwirp GWIRP]) "has been to fund research studies to identify treatment targets and test interventional approaches to alleviate symptoms. While most of these studies remain in progress, several have already shown varying levels of promise as GWI treatments." According to the May 2018 DoD publication:<ref name=":3" /><blockquote>'''''Published Results on Treatments'''''</blockquote><blockquote>''The earliest federally funded multi-center clinical trials were VA- and DoD-funded trials that focused on antibiotic treatment (doxycycline) (Donta, 2004) and cognitive behavioral therapy with exercise (Donta, 2003). Neither intervention provided long-lasting improvement for a substantial number of Veterans.''</blockquote><blockquote>''Preliminary analysis from a placebo-controlled trial showed that 100 mg of Coenzyme Q10 (known as CoQ10 or Ubiquinone) significantly improved general self-reported health and physical functioning, including among 20 symptoms, each of which was present in at least half of the study participants, with the exception of sleep. These improvements included reducing commonly reported symptoms of fatigue, dysphoric mood, and pain (Golomb, 2014). These results are currently being expanded in a GWIRP-funded trial of a “mitochondrial cocktail” for GWI of CoQ10 plus a number of nutrients chosen to support cellular energy production and defend against oxidative stress. The treatment is also being investigated in a larger, VA- sponsored Phase III trial of Ubiquinol, the reduced form of CoQ10.''</blockquote><blockquote>''In a randomized, sham-controlled VA-funded trial of a nasal CPAP mask (Amin, 2011b), symptomatic GW Veterans with sleep-disordered breathing receiving the CPAP therapy showed significant improvements in fatigue scores, cognitive function, sleep quality, and measures of physical and mental health (Amin, 2011a).''</blockquote><blockquote>''Preliminary data from a GWIRP-funded acupuncture treatment study showed that Veterans reported significant reductions in pain and both primary and secondary health complaints, with results being more positive in the bi-weekly versus weekly treatment group (Conboy, 2012). Current studies funded by the GWIRP and the VA are also investigating yoga as a treatment for GWI.''</blockquote><blockquote>''An amino acid supplement containing L-carnosine was found to reduce irritable bowel syndrome-associated diarrhea in a randomized, controlled GWIRP-funded trial in GW Veterans (Baraniuk, 2013). Veterans receiving L-carnosine showed a significant improvement in performance in a cognitive task, but no improvement in fatigue, pain, hyperalgesia, or activity levels.''</blockquote><blockquote>''Results from a 26-week GWIRP-funded trial comparing standard care to nasal irrigation with either saline or a xylitol solution revealed that both irrigation protocols reduced GWI respiratory (chronic rhinosinusitis) and fatigue symptoms (Hayer, 2015).''</blockquote><blockquote>''Administration of the glucocorticoid receptor antagonist mifepristone to GW Veterans in a GWIRP-funded randomized trial resulted in an improvement in verbal learning, but no improvement in self-reported physical health or other self-reported measures of mental health (Golier, 2016).''</blockquote><blockquote>'''''Ongoing Intervention Studies'''''</blockquote><blockquote>''The GWIRP is currently funding many early-phase clinical trials aimed at GWI. Interventions include direct electrical nerve stimulation, repurposing FDA-approved pharmaceuticals, and dietary protocols and/or nutraceuticals. Both ongoing and closed GWIRP-supported clinical treatment trials and pilot studies can be found at http://cdmrp.army.mil/gwirp/resources/cinterventions.shtml<nowiki/>.'' </blockquote><blockquote>''A Clinical Consortium Award was offered [in FY2017] to support a group of institutions, coordinated through an Operations Center that will conceive, design, develop, and conduct collaborative Phase I and II clinical evaluations of promising therapeutic agents for the management or treatment of GWI. These mechanisms were designed to build on the achievements of the previously established consortia and to further promote collaboration and resource sharing.''</blockquote>The [[United States Congress|U.S Congress]] has made significant and continuing investment in DoD's Gulf War illness treatment research, with $129 million appropriated for the GWIRP between federal fiscal years (FY) 2006 and 2016.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://cdmrp.army.mil/gwirp/default|title=Gulf War Illness Research Program, Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs|website=cdmrp.army.mil|access-date=2018-07-11}}</ref> The funding has risen from $5 million in FY2006, to $20 million each year from FY2013 through FY2017<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://cdmrp.army.mil/gwirp/pbks/gwirppbk2018.pdf|title="Gulf War Illness Research Program", Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs|last=|first=|date=|website=http://cdmrp.army.mil/gwirp/pbks/gwirppbk2018.pdf|access-date=2018-07-11}}</ref>, and to $21 million for FY2018.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://cdmrp.army.mil/funding/gwirp|title=Funding Opportunities-FY18 GWIRP, Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP), US DoD|website=cdmrp.army.mil|access-date=2018-07-11}}</ref> ==Epidemiologic research== Epidemiologic studies have looked at many suspected causal factors for Gulf War illness as seen in veteran populations. Below is a summary of epidemiologic studies of veterans displaying multisymptom illness and their exposure to suspect conditions from the 2008 U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs report.<ref name=RAC230>{{Citation|year=2008|title=Gulf War Illness and the Health of Gulf War Veterans, Scientific Findings and Recommendations|publisher=U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs|page=220 (p. 230 in PDF)|url=http://www.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|deadurl=no|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140603002651/http://www1.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|archivedate=2014-06-03|df=}}</ref> A fuller understanding of immune function in ill Gulf War veterans is needed, particularly in veteran subgroups with different clinical characteristics and exposure histories. It is also important to determine the extent to which identified immune perturbations may be associated with altered neurological and endocrine processes that are associated with immune regulation.<ref name=GWVI_08_p262>{{Citation|year=2008|title=Gulf War Illness and the Health of Gulf War Veterans, Scientific Findings and Recommendations|publisher=U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs|page=262 (p. 272 in PDF)|url=http://www.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|deadurl=no|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140603002651/http://www1.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|archivedate=2014-06-03|df=}}</ref> Very limited cancer data have been reported for U.S. Gulf War veterans in general, and no published research on cases occurring after 1999. Because of the extended latency periods associated with most cancers, it is important that cancer information is brought up to date and that cancer rates be assessed in Gulf War veterans on an ongoing basis. In addition, cancer rates should be evaluated in relation to identifiable exposure and location subgroups.<ref name=RAC55>{{Citation|year=2008|title=Gulf War Illness and the Health of Gulf War Veterans, Scientific Findings and Recommendations|publisher=U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs|page=45 (p. 55 in PDF)|url=http://www.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|deadurl=no|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140603002651/http://www1.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|archivedate=2014-06-03|df=}}</ref> {| class="wikitable" <!-- this table has not been peer reviewed --> |----- ! style="align: left;" colspan="8" | Epidemiologic studies of Gulf War veterans: association of deployment exposures with multisymptom illness<ref name=RAC222>{{Citation|year=2008|title=Gulf War Illness and the Health of Gulf War Veterans, Scientific Findings and Recommendations|publisher=U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs|page=222 (p. 232 in PDF)|url=http://www.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|deadurl=no|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140603002651/http://www1.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/docs/Committee_Documents/GWIandHealthofGWVeterans_RAC-GWVIReport_2008.pdf|archivedate=2014-06-03|df=}}</ref> |----- ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" | ! style="align: left;" colspan="2" |Preliminary analysis (no controls for exposure) ! style="align: left;" colspan="3" |Adjusted analysis (controlling for effects of exposure) ! style="align: left;" colspan="2" |Clinical evaluations |----- ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" | ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |GWV population in which association was assessed ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |GWV population in which association was statistically significant ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |GWV population in which association was assessed ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |GWV population in which association was statistically significant ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |Dose response effect identified? ! style="align: left;" colspan="2" | |----- ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |Pyridostigmine bromide ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |10 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |9 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |6 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |6 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |✓ ! style="align: left;" colspan="2" |<small>Associated with neurocognitive and HPA differences in GW vets</small> |----- ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |Pesticides ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |10 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |10 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |6 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |5 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |✓ ! style="align: left;" colspan="2" |<small>Associated with neurocognitive and HPA differences in GW vets</small> |----- ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |Physiological stressors ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |14 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |13 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |7 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |1 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" | ! style="align: left;" colspan="2" | |----- ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |Chemical weapons ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |16 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |13 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |5 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |3 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" | ! style="align: left;" colspan="2" |<small>Associated with neurocognitive and HPA differences in GW vets</small> |----- ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |Oil well fires ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |9 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |8 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |4 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |2 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |✓ ! style="align: left;" colspan="2" | |----- ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |Number of vaccines ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |2 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |2 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |1 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |1 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |✓ ! style="align: left;" colspan="2" | |----- ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |Anthrax vaccine ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |5 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |5 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |2 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |1 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" | ! style="align: left;" colspan="2" | |----- ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |Tent heater exhaust ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |5 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |4 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |2 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |1 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" | ! style="align: left;" colspan="2" | |----- ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |Sand/particulates ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |3 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |3 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |3 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |1 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" | ! style="align: left;" colspan="2" | |----- ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |Depleted uranium ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |5 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |3 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |1 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" |0 ! style="align: left;" colspan="1" | ! style="align: left;" colspan="2" | |----- |} == Comorbid Illnesses == Gulf War veterans have been identified to have an increased risk of [[multiple sclerosis]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.va.gov/ms/documents/Wallin_MS_Cohort_Incidence_Brain_2012.pdf|title=The Gulf War era multiple sclerosis cohort: age and incidence rates by race, sex and service|author=|date=|website=va.gov|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20161113032416/http://www.va.gov/ms/documents/Wallin_MS_Cohort_Incidence_Brain_2012.pdf|archivedate=2016-11-13|deadurl=no|df=}}</ref>. A 2017 study by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs found that veterans possibly exposed to chemical warfare agents at [[Khamisiyah]] experienced different patterns of brain cancer mortality risk compared to the other groups, with veterans possibly exposed having a higher risk of brain cancer in the time period immediately following the Gulf War.[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28780478] == Prognosis == According to the May 2018 DoD publication cited above, "Research suggests that the GWI symptomology experienced by Veterans has not improved over the last 25 years, with few experiencing improvement or recovery.... Many [Gulf War] Veterans will soon begin to experience the common co-morbidities associated with aging. The effect that aging will have on this unique and vulnerable population remains a matter of significant concern, and population-based research to obtain a better understanding of mortality, morbidity, and symptomology over time is needed."<ref name=":3" /> == Controversies == An early argument in the years following the Gulf War was that similar syndromes have been seen as an after effect of other conflicts &mdash; for example, '[[shell shock]]' after [[World War I]], and [[post-traumatic stress disorder]] (PTSD) after the [[Vietnam War]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Hyams|first=Kenneth C.|date=1996-09-01|title=War Syndromes and Their Evaluation: From the U.S. Civil War to the Persian Gulf War|url=https://dx.doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-125-5-199609010-00007|journal=Annals of Internal Medicine|volume=125|issue=5|pages=398|doi=10.7326/0003-4819-125-5-199609010-00007|issn=0003-4819}}</ref> Cited as evidence for this argument was a review of the medical records of 15,000 [[American Civil War]] soldiers showing that "those who lost at least 5% of their company had a 51% increased risk of later development of cardiac, gastrointestinal, or nervous disease."<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Pizarro|first=Judith|last2=Silver|first2=Roxane Cohen|last3=Prause|first3=JoAnn|date=2006-02-01|title=Physical and Mental Health Costs of Traumatic War Experiences Among Civil War Veterans|url=https://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.63.2.193|journal=Archives of General Psychiatry|volume=63|issue=2|pages=193|doi=10.1001/archpsyc.63.2.193|issn=0003-990X}}</ref> Early Gulf War research also failed to accurately account for the prevalence, duration, and health impact of Gulf War illness. For example, a November 1996 article in the ''[[New England Journal of Medicine]]'' found no difference in death rates, hospitalization rates, or self-reported symptoms between Persian Gulf veterans and non-Persian Gulf veterans. This article was a compilation of dozens of individual studies involving tens of thousands of veterans. The study did find a statistically significant elevation in the number of traffic accidents suffered by Gulf War veterans.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Gray|first=Gregory C.|last2=Coate|first2=Bruce D.|last3=Anderson|first3=Christy M.|last4=Kang|first4=Han K.|last5=Berg|first5=S. William|last6=Wignall|first6=F. Stephen|last7=Knoke|first7=James D.|last8=Barrett-Connor|first8=Elizabeth|date=1996-11-14|title=The Postwar Hospitalization Experience of U.S. Veterans of the Persian Gulf War|url=https://dx.doi.org/10.1056/nejm199611143352007|journal=New England Journal of Medicine|volume=335|issue=20|pages=1505–1513|doi=10.1056/nejm199611143352007|issn=0028-4793}}</ref> An April 1998 article in ''[[Emerging Infectious Diseases]]'' similarly found no increased rate of hospitalization and better health on average for veterans of the Persian Gulf War in comparison to those who stayed home.<ref name=pmid_9621191>{{cite journal |vauthors=Knoke JD, Gray GC |title=Hospitalizations for unexplained illnesses among U.S. veterans of the Persian Gulf War |journal=Emerging Infect. Dis. |volume=4 |issue=2 |pages=211–9 |year=1998 |pmid=9621191 |pmc=2640148 |doi= 10.3201/eid0402.980208}}</ref> In contrast to those early studies, in January 2006, a study led by Melvin Blanchard published in the ''[[Journal of Epidemiology]]'', part of the "National Health Survey of Gulf War-Era Veterans and Their Families", found that veterans deployed in the Persian Gulf War had nearly twice the prevalence of chronic multisymptom illness, a cluster of symptoms similar to a set of conditions often at that time called Gulf War Syndrome.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://record.wustl.edu/news/page/normal/6377.html|title=Study finds multisymptom condition is more prevalent among Persian Gulf vets|last=Purdy|first=MC|date=2006-01-20|publisher=[[Washington University in St. Louis]]|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090414152555/http://record.wustl.edu/news/page/normal/6377.html|archivedate=2009-04-14|deadurl=no|accessdate=2012-05-09|df=}}</ref> On November 17, 2008, the [[United States Department of Veterans Affairs|U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs]] (VA) Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses (RAC), a Congressionally mandated [[Federal Advisory Committee Act|federal advisory committee]] composed of VA-appointed clinicians, researchers, and representative Gulf War veterans,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.va.gov/rac-gwvi/|title=Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses Home|last=Illnesses|first=Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans'|website=www.va.gov|language=en|access-date=2018-07-11}}</ref> issued a major report announcing scientific findings, in part, that "Gulf War illness is real", that GWI is a distinct physical condition, and that it is not psychological in nature. The 454-page report reviewed 1,840 published studies to form its conclusions identifying the high prevalence of Gulf War illness, suggesting likely causes rooted in toxic exposures while ruling out combat stress as a cause, and opining that treatments likely could be found. It recommended that Congress increase funding for treatment-focused Gulf War illness research to at least $60 million per year. <ref name="CNN">{{cite news | url = http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/11/17/gulf.war.illness.study/index.html | title = Gulf War illness is real, new federal report says | publisher = [[CNN]] | last = Silverleib | first = A | date = 2008-12-09 | accessdate = 2012-05-09 | deadurl = no | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20121109040324/http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/11/17/gulf.war.illness.study/index.html | archivedate = 2012-11-09 | df = }}</ref><ref name="RAC11" /> In March 2013, a hearing was held before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations of the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, [[United States House of Representatives|U.S. House of Representatives]], to determine not whether Gulf War Illness exists, but rather how it is identified, diagnosed and treated, and how the tools put in place to aid these efforts have been used.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://purl.fdlp.gov/GPO/gpo45677|title=Gulf War: What Kind of Care Are Veterans Receiving 20 Years Later?: Hearing before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations of the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, U.S. House of Representatives, One Hundred Thirteenth Congress, First Session, Wednesday, March 13, 2013.|author=|date=|website=fdlp.gov}}</ref> By 2016, the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) concluded there was sufficient evidence of a positive association between deployment to the 1990-91 Gulf War and Gulf War illness.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/45180227|title=Gulf War and Health: Volume 10: Update of Health Effects of Serving in the Gulf War, 2016|last=Deborah Cory-Slechta and Roberta Wedge, Editors; Committee on Gulf War and Health, Volume 10: Update of Health Effects of Serving in the Gulf War; Board on the Health of Select Populations; Institute of Medicine; National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine|first=|date=2016|publisher=National Academy Press|others=Fulco, Carolyn., Liverman, Catharyn T., Sox, Harold C., Mitchell, Abigail E., Sivitz, Laura., Black, Robert E.|year=2016|isbn=030907178X|location=Washington, D.C.|pages=11|oclc=45180227}}</ref> === Jones Controversy === Louis Jones, Jr., the perpetrator of the 1995 [[murder of Tracie McBride]], stated that the Gulf War syndrome caused him to commit the crime and he sought clemency, hoping to avoid the death penalty given to him by a federal court.<ref name="MillerShould">Miller, Mark. "[http://www.newsweek.com/should-louis-jones-die-132259 Should Louis Jones Die?] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160809015628/http://www.newsweek.com/should-louis-jones-die-132259|date=2016-08-09}}" ''[[Newsweek]]''. March 12, 2003. Retrieved on July 17, 2016.</ref> Jones was executed in 2003.<ref name="CollinsCBSexecuted">Collins, Dan. "[http://www.cbsnews.com/news/gulf-war-vet-executed/ Gulf War Vet Executed] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160819205707/http://www.cbsnews.com/news/gulf-war-vet-executed/|date=2016-08-19}}." [[CBS]]. February 19, 2003. Retrieved on July 17, 2016.</ref> ==Related legislation== On March 14, 2014, Representative [[Mike Coffman]] introduced the [[Gulf War Health Research Reform Act of 2014 (H.R. 4261; 113th Congress)]] into the [[United States House of Representatives]]. The bill would alter the relationship between the Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Illnesses (RAC) and the [[United States Department of Veterans Affairs]] (VA). The bill would make the RAC an independent organization within the VA, require that a majority of the RAC's members be appointed by Congress instead of the VA, and state that the RAC can release its reports without needing prior approval from the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.<ref name=CoffmanPRmar14>{{cite web|last=Coffman|first=Mike|title=Bipartisan Bill on Gulf War Health Research|url=http://coffman.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/bipartisan-bill-on-gulf-war-health-research|publisher=House Office of Mike Coffman|accessdate=27 May 2014|date=14 March 2014|deadurl=yes|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140321054456/http://coffman.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/bipartisan-bill-on-gulf-war-health-research |archivedate=21 March 2014|df=}}</ref><ref name=USAtoday14mar>{{cite news|last=Kennedy|first=Kelly|title=Congress seeks independence for Gulf War illness board|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2014/03/14/house-demands-independence-from-va-for-gulf-war-illness-advisory-board/6428299/|accessdate=27 May 2014|newspaper=USA Today|date=14 March 2014|deadurl=no|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140530135801/http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2014/03/14/house-demands-independence-from-va-for-gulf-war-illness-advisory-board/6428299/|archivedate=30 May 2014|df=}}</ref> The RAC is responsible for investigating Gulf War illness, a chronic multisymptom disorder affecting returning military [[veterans]] and civilian workers of the [[Gulf War]].<ref name="veteranIllnesses"/> In the year prior to the consideration of this bill, the VA and the RAC were at odds with one another.<ref name="USAtoday14mar"/> The VA replaced all but one of the members of the RAC, removed some of their supervisory tasks, tried to influence the board to decide that stress, rather than biology was the cause of Gulf War illness, and told the RAC that it could not publish reports without permission.<ref name="USAtoday14mar"/> The RAC was originally created in 1997, after Congress decided that the VA's research into the issue was flawed, and focused on psychological causes, while mostly ignoring biological ones.<ref name="USAtoday14mar"/> ==See also== * [[Organophosphate-induced delayed neuropathy]] * [[Environmental issues with war]] * [[Michael Donnelly (veteran)]], an activist for sufferers of Gulf War illness * [[Posttraumatic stress disorder]] ==References== {{Reflist}} == External links == {{Medical resources | ICD9 = {{ICD9|V65.5}} (inconclusive) <br /> also nonstandard "DX111" | MeshID = D018923 }} * {{dmoz|Society/Military/Veterans/Issues/Health/Gulf_War_Illness/}} {{Gulf War}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Gulf War Syndrome}} [[Category:Gulf War syndrome| ]] [[Category:Syndromes]] [[Category:Ailments of unknown cause]] [[Category:Immune system disorders]] [[Category:Neurological disorders]] [[Category:Military personnel]] [[Category:Iraqi chemical weapons program]]'