ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Gulf War I (GWI) Veterans exposed to depleted uranium (DU) have undergone biennial surveillance to assess for DU-related health effects. No DU-specific respiratory effects have been observed cross-sectionally, but longitudinal lung function decline has not been assessed. METHODS: A dynamic cohort of 71 Veterans underwent spirometry testing between 1999 and 2019. Longitudinal rates of decline of spirometry values were compared among Veterans with high versus low uranium levels using a linear mixed model. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in rate of decline of spirometry values between Veterans with high versus low uranium levels. The overall rate of decline was similar to that of the general population. CONCLUSIONS: In 20 years of follow-up, there does not appear to be an accelerated rate of decline of lung function among veterans exposed to depleted uranium.
Subject(s)
Occupational Exposure , Persian Gulf Syndrome , Uranium , Veterans , Gulf War , Humans , Lung , Occupational Exposure/adverse effects , Occupational Exposure/analysis , Persian Gulf Syndrome/chemically induced , Persian Gulf Syndrome/epidemiology , Uranium/toxicityABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: A cohort of Gulf War I veterans who sustained exposure to depleted uranium undergoes biennial surveillance for potential uranium-related health effects. We performed impulse oscillometry and hypothesized that veterans with higher uranium body burdens would have more obstructive abnormalities than those with lower burdens. METHODS: We compared pulmonary function of veterans in high versus low urine uranium groups by evaluating spirometry and oscillometry values. RESULTS: Overall mean spirometry and oscillometry resistance values fell within the normal ranges. There were no significant differences between the high and low uranium groups for any parameters. However, more veterans were classified as having obstruction by oscillometry (42%) than spirometry (8%). CONCLUSIONS: While oscillometry identified more veterans as obstructed, obstruction was not uranium-related. However, the added sensitivity of this method implies a benefit in wider surveillance of exposed cohorts and holds promise in identifying abnormalities in areas of the lung historically described as silent.
Subject(s)
Gulf War , Lung/physiopathology , Occupational Exposure/statistics & numerical data , Respiratory Tract Diseases/epidemiology , Uranium , Veterans/statistics & numerical data , Adult , Asthma/epidemiology , Asthma/physiopathology , Bronchitis/epidemiology , Bronchitis/physiopathology , Cohort Studies , Cough/epidemiology , Cough/physiopathology , Dyspnea/epidemiology , Dyspnea/physiopathology , Forced Expiratory Volume , Humans , Middle Aged , Oscillometry , Pulmonary Emphysema/epidemiology , Pulmonary Emphysema/physiopathology , Respiratory Function Tests , Respiratory Tract Diseases/physiopathology , Spirometry , Vital CapacityABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: In a population of Gulf War I veterans who sustained inhalational exposure to depleted uranium during friendly fire incidents in 1991, we evaluated whether those with high body burdens of uranium were more likely to have pulmonary health abnormalities than those with low body burdens. METHODS: We compared self-reported respiratory symptoms, mean pulmonary function values, and prevalence of low-dose chest computed tomography abnormalities between high and low urine uranium groups. RESULTS: We found no significant differences in respiratory symptoms, abnormal pulmonary function values, or prevalence of chest computed tomography abnormalities between high and low urine uranium groups. Overall, the cohort's pulmonary function values fell within the expected clinical range. CONCLUSIONS: Our results support previous estimates that the depleted uranium levels inhaled during the 1991 friendly fire incidents likely do not cause long-term adverse pulmonary health effects.