http://www.boston.com/dailynews/204/region/Gulf_War_veterans_hope_study_f:.shtml

Gulf War veterans hope study finds antibiotic for their illnesses

By Nancy Zuckerbrod, Associated Press, 7/23/2001 22:39

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) Arthur Wilson struggles to hang on to his morning cup of coffee. It's a valiant effort, but the hot liquid usually wins spilling out of the mug and burning Wilson's shaky hand.

Tremors are among several symptoms Wilson has complained about since getting back from the Gulf War 10 years ago. He also struggles with memory loss, exhaustion and severe depression.

''What's happening in my brain?'' Wilson asked a nurse during a recent visit to Nashville's Veterans Affairs Medical Center. ''I didn't go away like this.''

The plight of the 43-year-old former Army sergeant is not uncommon.

Of the 500,000 veterans who served in the Gulf War between August 1990 and July 1991, 150,000 are receiving compensation for service-related disabilities, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs. More than 3,000 have ''Gulf War Syndrome,'' illnesses doctors can't diagnose but believe are linked to the veterans' Gulf War service.

The government has spent $8 million and the past year studying an antibiotic that may help syndrome sufferers. The 500 participants all tested positive for strains of a bacteria in their blood known as mycoplasma, which scientists believe might be related to their illnesses.

Veterans returned home complaining of headaches, chronic fatigue, rashes, joint and muscular pain, memory loss, reproductive problems, depression and gastrointestinal problems.

Smoke from oil well fires, depleted uranium in U.S. weaponry, vaccinations and exposure to chemical or biological weapons have all been cited by veterans as possible sources of exposure.

The government initially dismissed the illnesses as psychological, but the Pentagon and Department of Veterans Affairs now acknowledge serious health problems exist. They maintain, however, that no single illness is responsible.

Nearly 200 government studies have reviewed the veterans' exposure theories, about half of which are still ongoing, and none have pointed to a single cause.

Only two studies have focused on a treatment for Gulf War Syndrome the antibiotic study and one examining the benefits of exercise and behavioral therapy. The latter involves about 1,100 veterans.

The antibiotic study was conducted at about 30 veterans and military clinics nationwide, including Nashville, Milwaukee and Manchester, N.H.

Along with testing positive for mycoplasma, participants showed signs of chronic fatigue, memory loss or muscle or skeletal pain. Half were given the antibiotic doxycycline for a year, and half were given a placebo. Participants were seen monthly by nurses, who also tracked symptoms during a six month post-treatment period ending this summer.

The study, which may be published later this year, should show whether veterans taking the antibiotic improved while taking the drug and whether the bacteria was still present in subsequent blood tests.

Some research has shown Gulf War veterans have a higher rate of mycoplasma infections than the general population, but Dr. John Feussner, chief research and development officer for the Veterans Health Administration, said too few people have been tested for mycoplasma infections to reach a true conclusion.

Feussner said it's also unclear how the veterans contracted the infection, which exists around the world.

There already is anecdotal evidence that the antibiotic is working, Feussner said.

For example, Kay Bingham, study coordinator in Birmingham, Ala., said half her patients felt better while taking the pills and felt worse without them. She doesn't know if those patients were taking doxycycline or a placebo.

For veterans like Wilson, answers can't come soon enough. The Clarksville man lost his job due to his health problems, and he fears his depression and anger are taking a toll on his personal life.

''I don't know how long I'm going to be able to keep my marriage together,'' he said. ''If I turn around and lose my home and my family, I have no reason to live.''

That worries nurse Debbie Greene, study coordinator at the Nashville VA hospital where there are 35 participants, the largest of any site. The Fort Campbell Army base straddling the Kentucky-Tennessee border is just 60 miles northwest of Nashville.

''I have a tremendous appreciation for these veterans and what they're going through,'' Greene said. ''I do feel like there is something physical wrong with these patients.''

Dennis Easterday, a retired Army staff sergeant from Knoxville, is glad the government is doing the study, even though it didn't offer him immediate relief.

''The medicine never fazed me. I kept getting worse instead of better,'' said Easterday, who speculated he was taking a placebo.

If the study is successful, Easterday believes veterans' families should be tested for mycoplasma infections.

''I'm concerned for what I've done to my family. All of a sudden my family is beginning to have problems,'' said Easterday, 48. Their symptoms included rashes, fatigue and respiratory problems.

Debbie Sprake of Clarksville said she has suffered from fatigue and severe memory loss since her husband study participant and retired Sgt. Maj. John Sprake returned from the war.

''I can't remember a friend. It's just getting bad,'' said Mrs. Sprake, 42. ''There should be a program for us.''

Bingham said study participants often report their families are experiencing similar symptoms.

''We know that mycoplasmas are transmitted between contact with other individuals,'' said Dr. Joel Baseman, a mycoplasma expert in San Antonio who is performing the lab work for the study.

But Baseman said it is not certain that veterans are transmitting their infections, or that the mycoplasma bacteria is even the cause of their illnesses.

''It's a hypothesis,'' he said. ''We are trying very hard to do the solid science that will allow us to come to a comfortable, scientifically based solution.''

Baseman said what he can't replicate in the lab are the conditions under which veterans lived during the Gulf War. That is one of the reasons he believes scientists may never learn exactly what caused these mysterious illnesses.

''Imagine you get sick eight years ago, nine years ago, 10 years ago, and now you tell me, Joel, I would like you to figure out what happened to me 10 years ago. This is really a serious challenge,'' he said. ''You may never find that initial trauma.''

That can be difficult for some veterans to understand, and it's also hard for them to remain patient with the government, said retired Army Staff Sgt. Charles Spalding, another study participant from Clarksville.

''I'd like to see them tell us the truth and cure us,'' he said. ''We did our job and now it's time for them to do us right.''

On the Net:

Defense Department Gulf War information:

http://www.gulflink.osd.mil/

Department of Veterans Affairs Gulf War information:

http://www.va.gov/health/environ/persgulf.htm

-- Anonymous, July 24, 2001