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Exercise tolerance in Gulf War veterans and relationship to deployment exposures (884.22)
Author(s) -
Smith Webb,
Klein Jacquelyn,
Ndirangu Duncan,
Chen Yang,
Falvo Michael
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.28.1_supplement.884.22
Subject(s) - cardiorespiratory fitness , medicine , vo2 max , ventilatory threshold , oxygen pulse , physical therapy , heart rate , blood pressure
Exercise intolerance and post‐exertional malaise are common findings that persist in veterans of the 1990 ‐ 1991 Gulf War. Previous work has suggested that these symptoms are related to exposure to airborne hazards during deployment. The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between self‐report measures of exposure and fatigue with cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) performance. Ten male veterans (51.0±3.8 yrs; BMI: 30.0±5.1) completed health, exposure and fatigue questionnaires prior to a maximal exercise test to exhaustion on cycle ergometer. Exercise capacity was significantly reduced in this group and 40% had ventilatory limitations to exercise (i.e. ventilatory reserve < 30%). Exposure intensity was significantly associated with oxygen pulse (r = ‐0.69, p = 0.04), fatigue severity (r = 0.71, p = 0.03), and trends were observed for peak oxygen consumption (VO2) and uptake kinetics (p = 0.08). However, when categorized into low and high exposure groups, VO2 peak and uptake kinetics were significantly greater (p<0.05) in the low exposure group. Our preliminary findings in a small group of Gulf War veterans suggest that higher deployment‐related exposures may be associated with greater fatigue, reduced exercise capacity and slower VO2 kinetics. Future studies are necessary to better understand the health effects of airborne hazards exposures on cardiorespiratory function. Grant Funding Source : VA Grants 1I21RX001079‐01, 1I21CX000797‐01