Spouses of Persian Gulf War I veterans: medical evaluation of a U.S. cohort

Mil Med. 2006 Jul;171(7):613-8. doi: 10.7205/milmed.171.7.613.

Abstract

Ten years after the 1991 Persian Gulf War (GW I), a comprehensive evaluation of a national cohort of deployed veterans (DV) demonstrated a higher prevalence of several medical conditions, in comparison to a similarly identified cohort of nondeployed veterans (NDV). The present study determined the prevalence of medical conditions among nonveteran spouses of these GW I DV and NDV. A cohort of 490 spouses of GW I DV and 537 spouses of GW I NDV underwent comprehensive face-to-face examinations. No significant differences in health were detected except that spouses of DV were less likely to have one or more of a group of six common skin conditions. We conclude that, 10 years after GW I, the general physical health of spouses of GW I DV is similar to that of spouses of NDV.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Cohort Studies
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Female
  • Gulf War*
  • Health Surveys*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Military Medicine
  • Prevalence
  • Spouses / statistics & numerical data*
  • United States / epidemiology
  • Veterans / statistics & numerical data*