A double-blind, randomized multicentre study was undertaken to evaluate the possible effect of chelation treatment with ethylenediamine-tetraacetic acid (EDTA) in patients with severe intermittent claudication. A total of 153 patients received 20 intravenous infusions of either 3 g Na2EDTA or placebo during a period of 5-9 weeks. Vitamin, mineral and trace element supplements were administered orally. The changes observed in the pain-free and maximal walking distances, measured on a treadmill, were similar in the two groups. During the 3-month (n = 149) and 6-month (n = 123) follow-up period, no long-term therapeutic effect of EDTA could be demonstrated. The ankle-brachial blood pressure index remained unchanged throughout the study period. This study failed to demonstrate any effect of EDTA chelation treatment in intermittent claudication.
Sixty patients with intermittent claudication participated in a double-blind placebo-controlled trial of 20 courses of intravenous chelation therapy with 3 g of disodium EDTA vs placebo during 5-9 weeks. After the first infusion, the 24-h urinary excretion of lead and zinc was approximately 25-fold higher in the EDTA-treated group; relative differences for copper and calcium were smaller. Urinary magnesium excretion in the EDTA-treated group was one-third less than in the control group. After the treatment period, the blood lead concentration had decreased by approximately 73% and the serum zinc concentration by approximately 34%; other changes in blood concentrations were negligible. The loss of essential minerals and the possible redistribution of lead in the body may constitute a disadvantage that should be taken into account in repeated intravenous EDTA treatment.
Where much is known about the consequences of spinal and low back pain (LBP) during military deployments, there is lesser knowledge of risk factors for LBP among the deployed forces. The objective of this study was to identify deployment-related exposures associated with LBP. The study was a questionnaire-based cohort study among 1,931 Danish soldiers deployed to Iraq. Of the 680 respondents, 175 (26%) reported LBP. The population of respondents was adjusted for potential nonresponse bias. The associations between LBP and explanatory variables were analyzed using ordinal logistic regression models. Older age (p = 0.016), support from leaders (odds ratio [OR] = 1.69, p = 0.019), psychological stress (OR = 1.71, p = 0.009), awkward working positions (OR = 1.98, p = 0.001), and working in depots or storehouses (OR = 2.60, p = 0.041) were found to be associated with LBP after adjustment of all other variables. Combat and exposure to work, sport, or traffic accidents were not associated with LBP in this study, which was attributed to the characteristics of the actual mission. Preventive measures should include predeployment preparation of leaders to cope with LBP and other musculoskeletal trouble among their subordinates and involve medical personnel, especially deployed physiotherapists, by giving advice to soldiers of different military occupational specialties on how to optimize ergonomics at work.
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