Agent Orange exposure and disease prevalence in Korean Vietnam veterans: The Korean veterans health study

Yi, Sang‐Wook; Hong, Jae-Seok; Ohrr, Heechoul; Yi, Jee‐Jeon

doi:10.1016/j.envres.2014.04.027

Cited by 77 publications

(57 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…A study of Vietnam veterans from Korea found a positive association between Agent Orange and self-reported ALS when based on a self-reported perceived Agent Orange exposure index (Yi et al, 2013), but no association when employing two separate geographic information system (GIS) models to assess exposure (Yi et al, 2013). Another study of the same population reported no association between GIS-based exposure to Agent Orange and ALS identified via health insurance claims data (Yi et al, 2014). In our study, the publicity surrounding Agent Orange exposure may have led to its being over-reported—more so by cases than controls—particularly for those who reported exposure in the field.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Military service, deployments, and exposures in relation to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis etiology

Beard

Engel

Richardson

et al. 2016

Environment International

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Background Factors underlying a possible excess of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) among military veterans remain unidentified. Limitations of previous studies on this topic include reliance on ALS mortality as a surrogate for ALS incidence, low statistical power, and sparse information on military-related factors. Objectives We evaluated associations between military-related factors and ALS using data from a case-control study of U.S. military veterans. Methods From 2005 to 2010, we identified medical record-confirmed ALS cases via the National Registry of Veterans with ALS and controls via the Veterans Benefits Administration’s Beneficiary Identification and Records Locator System database. In total, we enrolled 621 cases and 958 frequency-matched controls in the Genes and Environmental Exposures in Veterans with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis study. We collected information on military service and deployments and 39 related exposures. We used unconditional logistic regression models to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). We used inverse probability weighting to adjust for potential bias from confounding, missing covariate data, and selection arising from a case group that disproportionately included long-term survivors and a control group that may or may not differ from U.S. military veterans at large. Results The odds of ALS did not differ for veterans of the Air Force, Army, Marines, and Navy. We found higher odds of ALS for veterans whose longest deployment was World War II or the Korean War and a positive trend with total years of all deployments (OR = 1.27; 95% CI: 1.06, 1.52). ALS was positively associated with exposure to herbicides for military purposes, nasopharyngeal radium, personal pesticides, exhaust from heaters or generators, high-intensity radar waves, contaminated food, explosions within one mile, herbicides in the field, mixing and application of burning agents, burning agents in the field, and Agent Orange in the field, with ORs between 1.50 and 7.75. Conclusions Although our results need confirmation, they are potentially important given the large number of U.S. military veterans, and they provide clues to potential factors underlying the apparent increase of ALS in veteran populations.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Military service, deployments, and exposures in relation to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis etiology

Beard

Engel

Richardson

et al. 2016

Environment International

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“…Among 187,897 men initially included in the Korean Veterans Health Study, [13,14] 164,208 living men were identified in June 2004 after the exclusion of 23,689 individuals who were deceased or had emigrated. A postal survey was sent out on July 27, 2004, to which 117,609 men (71.6%) replied.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of alcohol consumption and body mass index on mortality from nonneoplastic liver diseases, upper aerodigestive tract cancers, and alcohol use disorders in Korean older middle-aged men

Hong

et al. 2016

Medicine

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“…Epidemiological links between pesticide exposure and AD has been fairly strong [25,37,39,41], particularly for occupational exposure of organophosphates in men [39,41], but not without controversy [42]. Wartime exposure to Agent Orange is strongly associated with many ailments, including neurological disorders like AD (adjusted odds ratio (aOR): 95%; confidence interval (CI): 1.64, 1.12-2.41) [43]. In terms of lifetime environmental exposure, cross-sectional and prospective data from the Maastricht Aging Study found exposure to pesticides to increase the risk of mild cognitive impairment (Cross-sectional, self-reported aOR, 95% CI: 4.94, 1.53-16.1), usually viewed as prodromal to AD [44].…”

Section: Epidemiological Links Between Pesticide Exposure and Alzheimmentioning

confidence: 99%

Neuropathological Mechanisms Associated with Pesticides in Alzheimer’s Disease

Tang

2020

Toxics

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Environmental toxicants have been implicated in neurodegenerative diseases, and pesticide exposure is a suspected environmental risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Several epidemiological analyses have affirmed a link between pesticides and incidence of sporadic AD. Meanwhile, in vitro and animal models of AD have shed light on potential neuropathological mechanisms. In this paper, a perspective on neuropathological mechanisms underlying pesticides’ induction of AD is provided. Proposed mechanisms range from generic oxidative stress induction in neurons to more AD-specific processes involving amyloid-beta (Aβ) and hyperphosphorylated tau (p-tau). Mechanisms that are more speculative or indirect in nature, including somatic mutation, epigenetic modulation, impairment of adult neurogenesis, and microbiota dysbiosis, are also discussed. Chronic toxicity mechanisms of environmental pesticide exposure crosstalks in complex ways and could potentially be mutually enhancing, thus making the deciphering of simplistic causal relationships difficult.

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Agent Orange exposure and disease prevalence in Korean Vietnam veterans: The Korean veterans health study

Cited by 77 publications

References 52 publications

Military service, deployments, and exposures in relation to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis etiology

Military service, deployments, and exposures in relation to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis etiology

Impact of alcohol consumption and body mass index on mortality from nonneoplastic liver diseases, upper aerodigestive tract cancers, and alcohol use disorders in Korean older middle-aged men

Neuropathological Mechanisms Associated with Pesticides in Alzheimer’s Disease

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