Long-Term Sequelae of Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome Attributable to Hantaan Virus in Korean War Veterans

Health status was sought for approximately 1600 Korean War veterans who contracted hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) during deployment to Korea between 1951 and 1953. To determine whether long-term sequelae were present for these individuals, mortality and morbidity data were collected from the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the Social Security Administration, and the National Death Index records. Control subjects were selected from military units in Korea with no reported cases of HFRS. Those with HFRS had a slightly higher mortality rate (33.2%) than did noninfected individuals (32.0%), but this difference was not statistically significant. Non-Caucasian cases had significantly higher morbidity rates than did non-Caucasian controls only for transient ischemic attacks (4.8% versus 0%) and diabetes mellitus (19.3% versus 8.1%). In conclusion, HFRS did not increase mortality rates in this cohort but might have had an impact on selected morbidity outcomes.