Symptom patterns among Gulf War registry veterans.
OBJECTIVE
We identify symptom patterns among veterans who believe they suffer from Gulf War-related illnesses and characterize groups of individuals with similar patterns.


METHODS
A mail survey was completed by 1161 veterans drawn from the Gulf War Health Registry.


RESULTS
An exploratory factor analysis revealed 4 symptom factors. A K-means cluster analysis revealed 2 groups: (1) veterans reporting good health and few moderate/severe symptoms, and (2) veterans reporting fair/poor health and endorsing an average of 37 symptoms, 75% as moderate/severe. Those in Cluster 2 were more likely to report having 1 or more of 24 medical conditions.


CONCLUSIONS
These findings are consistent with previous investigations of symptom patterns in Gulf War veterans. This multisymptom illness may be more fully characterized by the extent, breadth, and severity of symptoms reported.
Hallman
William K
WK
New Jersey Center for Environmental Hazards Research, East Orange, USA. hallman@aesop.rutgers.edu
Kipen
Howard M
HM
Diefenbach
Michael
M
Boyd
Kendal
K
Kang
Han
H
Leventhal
Howard
H
Wartenberg
Daniel
D
D002908:Chronic Disease; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007087:Illinois / Q000453:epidemiology; D008873:Mid-Atlantic Region / Q000453:epidemiology; D009657:North Carolina / Q000453:epidemiology; D018923:Persian Gulf Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D012042:Registries; D012650:Self Disclosure; D018434:Sickness Impact Profile; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States; D014493:United States Department of Veterans Affairs; D014728:Veterans / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data