Prevalence of Symptoms and Symptom-based Conditions among Gulf War Veterans: Current Status of Research Findings

Shortly after the end of the Gulf War in March 1991, media reports began to emerge that veterans were experi-encing a variety of medically unexplained symptoms, including fatigue, headache, aches and pains, and cognitive disturbances. In January 1992, the press reported an “outbreak ” of unexplained symptoms among members of the 123rd Army Reserve Unit in Indiana. Soon, other veterans reported similar symptoms, and public concern grew regarding a “mystery illness ” or “Gulf War syndrome.” Subsequent investigation of the reserve unit found no evidence for an outbreak of a unique disease (1). Although, well-defined diseases have been identified among some Gulf War veterans (e.g., 12 cases of viscerotropic leishmaniasis) (2), a substantial proportion of Gulf War veterans ’ health complaints involves nonspecific symptoms, which are not readily explained medically. To address Gulf War veterans ’ health concerns, the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense established clinical evaluation and registry programs. Although not created for research purposes, these programs have provided useful descriptive information regarding symptoms and illnesses of concern to Gulf War veterans. Analysis of 18,495 Gulf War veterans evaluated by