Michael B. Lustik

Health Status of Air Force Veterans Occupationally Exposed to Herbicides in Vietnam: I. Physical Health

The Air Force Health Study is a 20-year comprehensive assessment of the health of Air Force veterans of Operation Ranch Hand, the unit responsible for aerial spraying of herbicides in Vietnam. The study compares the health and noncombat mortality of Ranch Hand veterans with a comparison group of Air Force veterans primarily involved with cargo missions in Southeast Asia but who were not exposed to herbicides. This report summarizes the health of these veterans as determined at the third in a series of physical examinations. Nine hundred ninety-five Ranch Hands and 1299 comparison subjects attended the second follow-up examination in 1987. The two groups were similar in reported health problems, diagnosed skin conditions, and hepatic, cardiovascular, and immune profiles. Ranch Hands have experienced significantly more basal cell carcinomas than comparison subjects. The two groups were not different with respect to melanoma and systemic cancer.

The Air Force health study: An epidemiologic investigation of health effects in Air Force personnel following exposure to herbicides, serum dioxin analysis of 1987 examination results

Abstract The possible association between occupational exposure to Herbicide Orange (and its dioxin contaminant) and adverse health experienced by Air Force personnel who served in Operation Ranch Hand units in Vietnam from 1962 to 1971 was investigated. This report presents conclusions drawn from statistical analyses of approximately 300 health-related endpoints in 12 clinical areas: general health, malignancy, neurology, psychology, gastrointestinal, dermatology, cardiovascular, hematology, renal, endocrine, immunology, and pulmonary. The analyses focused on dioxin measurements in serum collected from 1,670 participants as part of the 1987 examination. Significant associations between serum dioxin levels and several lipid-related variables were found in these analyses.