My husband is a Gulf War vet and has had too many problems to list here

I have been interested in whether anyone in the 326 Med Battalion has been experiencing any illnesses. I have. Although I look healthy, I have my days I can't get enough energy to do much. I have muscle weakness, muscle spasms, sharp shooting pains, migraines, diarrhea, dizziness, knee pain and alternating blood pressure. These are the ones that bother me the most. I know I'm not the only vet suffering, but it would be nice to others 326 Med veterans.

sherry strickland/spec August 23, 2000

My fiancé was not in the Gulf War - he enlisted in the Army in the spring of '93 - but he is questioning some of the "immunizations" he was given. About a year and a half ago, he began having these episodes that resembled being drunk. He would become emotional, irrational, his speech would be incoherent, he would lose his sense of balance, and his breath would become very sweet. Sometimes he would also vomit or pass out. These episodes would last for anywhere from 30 minutes to hours. At first we thought it was diabetes, but the tests his doctors ran came back negative for diabetes. His doctors told him to just keep a healthy diet, but that didn't help. Then 6 months ago he started having diarrhea several times a day, which doctors attributed to a hyper-active gall bladder. He also started having these back spasms that would put him on the floor for hours. He also gets migraines periodically. A few weeks ago he passed out during one of the "drunk" episodes, and he actually had a seizure. Doctors are now looking at a neurological answer for his problems, which they are labeling as seizures. They say it may be from head trauma he experienced during a jump (he was in the 82nd Airborne div.). We are now wondering if it may be from an experimental "immunization" the govt. tested on Army personnel - I know none of you would put it past them! Does anyone else out there have these problems, too?

Julie Fandrich on August 22, 2000

Failure to thrive

Has anyone had any healthy babies who at age 21 months suddenly started losing weight?? Daughter of a GWV.

Dandelion71 August 20, 2000

I served in the gulf and have had strange skin rashes ever since I got back .I have memory loss and severe headaches often. I have never been to the VA or talked to anyone about it. what is the first step? who do I need to talk to?
tom d August 19, 2000

LIVER? (Liver is an organ of concern with 2-butoxyethanol) See MSDS info

I have liver problems associated with my Gulf War experience that started in Iraq, APR 1991. Whatever got me has done a job on my cardiac, neuro, gastro, and other systems. My LFT's (liver function tests) have been abnormal since then and have proceeded to become worse. Additionally, I had two liver biopsies taken at Walter Reed AMC, Jan 1993 and June 2000. The first one was non-diagnostic and the second one was very abnormal. They (VA and US Army) have repeatedly tested me for all the known Hepatitis variations and other liver problems and they come up normal. I am positive for "Q fever" or something that reacts to the test like "Q fever". Also my spleen has been chronically enlarged for a number of years.

What they did to me /ideas: Full LFT's (SGOT/ SPGT ??), Q fever titer test, full Hepatitis series (A-D), if the LFT's are abnormal go for CAT Scan of abdomen to look at liver and spleen. If LFT's are abnormal and there is anything, even small, wrong with the liver CAT Scan, you may want to talk with your GI Dr. ref a liver biopsy. Stop all Alcohol or other drug usage, be able to say to the Dr.s: "ZERO Intake", that will make things much easier.

I'm just a retired Army guy, but my wife is a medical professional. I will have her look at this when she gets off shift to see if I goofed anything up and if she can add anything to it. She is the one who actually manages my medical care and remembers all the important stuff.

-Barry Kapplan August 21, 2000
mail to: kapplanfarm@yahoo.com