MEDICAL ALERTS FOR DESERT STORM VETS
Study Suggests Link Between Crohn’s Disease and PTSD
Medical alert for our veterans of OIF,OEF, Desert Storm and Vietnam Veterans a new study in one of the great peer Review journals- Frontline Gastroenterology and covered by newswire services Health.com and Health Day involves the development of PTSD and Crohn’s Disease.
Gut problems for Desert Storm Veterans listed as IBS for VA Claims. Irritable Bowel Syndrome is a symptom that can be explored to get more answers. Referrals need to be made to rule out Cancers and other diseases ie Crohn’s Disease. The Department of Veterans Affairs need to have a more active, proactive stance for the veterans and needs to have information flow improve and made easier for Health Care Providers and Medical Researchers. There needs to be more SOPs and updates circulated to all the VA facilities nationwide.
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 1 (HealthDay News) — Crohn’s disease may cause post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a new study contends. The study included nearly 600 Swiss adults with Crohn’s disease, an incurable inflammatory bowel disorder that causes severe pain and diarrhea. The study participants underwent PTSD assessment at the start of the study and 19 percent of them were found to have the disorder. All the participants were monitored for 18 months. The researchers found that Crohn’s patients with PTSD were more than 13 times likelier to experience worsening symptoms than those without PTSD.
The study appears Dec. 2 in the online edition of Frontline Gastroenterology.
Crohn’s can’t be cured but PTSD can, and doctors treating Crohn’s patients need to be alert for PTSD and refer patients for appropriate therapy, said the researchers, led by Roland von Kaenel, a professor with Bern University Hospital, in Switzerland. PTSD is typically triggered by violence, natural disasters and emergency situations. But a growing body of research shows that serious illness, along with diagnostic and treatment procedures, may trigger the psychological condition. Over a long period of time, PTSD can permanently change the body’s hormonal and immune responses, making a person more prone to serious health problems, the researchers said.
“In most cases, patients avoid talking about cures which remind them of having the disease,” the researchers wrote in a news release from the journal’s publisher. “Such behavior may unwillingly be encouraged by the usual shortness of consultation time and unfamiliarity of [gut specialists] in dealing with the psychological needs of their patients.”
More information
The Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America has more about Crohn’s disease. – Robert Preidt – SOURCE: BMJ journals, news release, Dec. 1, 2010
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Second Medical Alert for Gulf War/Desert Storm Veterans for February 2011
Carcinoid tumour associated with enterovirus infection.
Dr Chia research article from Journal of Clinical Pathology on enterovirus and a cancer needs to be shared widely at the Department of Veterans Affairs and circulated to all health care providers. Our only chance with beating cancer is TIME. Adequate diagnostic tests to rule out cancers for our Desert Storm Veterans and our newest veterans from OIF/OEF is a must and we all must be proactive and knowledgeable and that includes our patients and their family members!
There is an urgent need for new SOPs at the VA to distribute new research findings for Gulf War illness to researchers, medical care providers, and the patients. This has to be a full team effort! As a Desert Storm Veteran and Nurse officer who has served as a veterans’ advocate for more than 20 years I get calls, emails, contacts from our veterans and keep my eyes on research and reports. I am taking bold steps to alert community of veterans and health care providers of problems being seen and doing all I can to save lives and improve veteran lives.
Another health warning for our gulf war/desert storm veterans I am getting more info on Cancers and yes GI. Please do not just suffer in silence if you have health problems please be sure they rule out any cancers first. Yes Gulf War illness, irritable bowel, CFS/ME is baffling and complex. But tell them at least rule out known illnesses including any cancers. If you have any problems I am here for you! Email me at [email protected] way we can talk more or get on phone. Research Abstract Below:
J Clin Pathol. 2011 Jan 28. Chia J, Chia A, El-Habbal R. – EV Med Research, Lomita, California, USA.
Abstract
Enteroviruses commonly infect the gastrointestinal tract, and replication of enteroviruses has been well documented in the Peyer patches of the small bowel. Chronic enterovirus infection has been found in the stomach and terminal ileum of patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome. The authors report the unexpected finding of enterovirus VP1 protein, by immunoperoxidase staining, in carcinoid tumours found in one patient with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and another patient with chronic lower quadrant abdominal pain, and suggest a possible association between enteroviruses and tumorigenesis.
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