Guest guest Posted August 7, 2003 Report Share Posted August 7, 2003 Sorry for the long post. Are several different articles about this, and thought would post all the articles: The gov of course won't release all the cases. Was reading on some of the military forums. Many of our military personnel are ill, and the gov has not released their cases, and info. Last July we lost A Missourian, Spc. Neusche, 20, of Montreal, Mo., died of an illness July 12. *************************************** Besides bacteria and viruses, he said, pneumonia also can be brought on by fungus, parasites and noninfectious causes such as exposure to metal dust. ********************************************************** DU illness? by AP, Saturday August 02, 2003 at 04:38 PM " Besides bacteria and viruses, he said, pneumonia also can be brought on by fungus, parasites and noninfectious causes such as exposure to metal dust. " Death of soldier from Missouri will be investigated amid spike in pneumonia cases THE ASSOCIATED PRESS updated: 07/28/2003 11:29 PM SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Epidemiologists are investigating two unusual deaths from illness among troops in the Middle East to see whether they are related to 10 cases of severe pneumonia, The Springfield News Leader reported. A Missourian, Spc. Neusche, 20, of Montreal, Mo., died of an illness July 12. His parents said the disease caused various organs to break down. Two researchers have already been sent to the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, where Neusche was treated before his illness. __________________ Found this one at Arabia.com: US soldiers deployed around Baghdad airport started showing symptoms of mysterious fever, itching, scars and dark brown spots on the skin, the source, who refused to be named, said in statements published Thursday, July 17, by the Saudi Al-Watan newspaper. Death of soldier from Missouri will be investigated amid spike in pneumonia cases THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 07/28/2003 SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Epidemiologists are investigating two unusual deaths from illness among troops in the Middle East to see whether they are related to 10 cases of severe pneumonia, The Springfield News Leader reported. A Missourian, Spc. Neusche, 20, of Montreal, Mo., died of an illness July 12. His parents said the disease caused various organs to break down. Two researchers have already been sent to the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, where Neusche was treated before his death. The U.S. Army surgeon general's office told The News Leader an additional team of six researchers is preparing to fly to Iraq to investigate. The cases under investigation have occurred since March 1. Another soldier whose name wasn't released died about a month before Neusche, on June 17. Col. DeFraites, the surgeon general's senior preventative-medicine physician, said officials have not yet been able to identify a specific bacterium or virus that could have caused such severe cases of pneumonia. " It's not entirely unheard of for this to happen, " said DeFraites. He said that in the past five years, 17 soldiers have died of acute respiratory distress syndrome. However, he said it is uncommon for pneumonia to cause a breakdown in organs other than the lungs. Neusche's parents said that's what happened to their son. Mark and Neusche said they were told their son's kidneys, liver and muscles began to deteriorate after he contracted the illness. " The doctor said (Josh) got into some type of toxin that began degenerating his muscles, " Mark Neusche said Friday. The investigation comes at a time of overall concern about pneumonia. DeFraites said there has been a noticeable increase in pneumonia cases among soldiers since the war in Iraq began. He didn't release specific numbers but said the incidence of pneumonia is exceeding military expectations of 10 to 20 cases among deployed soldiers each month. Most of the patients have served in Kuwait and Iraq. Besides bacteria and viruses, he said, pneumonia also can be brought on by fungus, parasites and noninfectious causes such as exposure to metal dust. DeFraites said preliminary tests show the illness is not passed from person to person and is not related to severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS. During the investigation, the teams of epidemiologists will study everything from the soldiers' medical records and tissue samples to soil, water and air samples. DeFraites said infectious agents such as anthrax and smallpox also will be investigated. " Nothing's going to be ruled out, " DeFraites said. " When you go into one of these things, you keep an open mind. ... There's enough concern about these two fatal cases (occurring) in such a short period of time " to warrant the investigation. Montreal, Mo., is just south of Camdenton, near the Lake of the Ozarks. death. The U.S. Army surgeon general's office told The News Leader an additional team of six researchers is preparing to fly to Iraq to investigate. The cases under investigation have occurred since March 1. Another soldier whose name wasn't released died about a month before Neusche, on June 17. Col. DeFraites, the surgeon general's senior preventative- medicine physician, said officials have not yet been able to identify a specific bacterium or virus that could have caused such severe cases of pneumonia. " It's not entirely unheard of for this to happen, " said DeFraites. He said that in the past five years, 17 soldiers have died of acute respiratory distress syndrome. However, he said it is uncommon for pneumonia to cause a breakdown in organs other than the lungs. Neusche's parents said that's what happened to their son. Mark and Neusche said they were told their son's kidneys, liver and muscles began to deteriorate after he contracted the illness. " The doctor said (Josh) got into some type of toxin that began degenerating his muscles, " Mark Neusche said Friday. The investigation comes at a time of overall concern about pneumonia. DeFraites said there has been a noticeable increase in pneumonia cases among soldiers since the war in Iraq began. He didn't release specific numbers but said the incidence of pneumonia is exceeding military expectations of 10 to 20 cases among deployed soldiers each month. Most of the patients have served in Kuwait and Iraq. Besides bacteria and viruses, he said, pneumonia also can be brought on by fungus, parasites and noninfectious causes such as exposure to metal dust. DeFraites said preliminary tests show the illness is not passed from person to person and is not related to severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS. During the investigation, the teams of epidemiologists will study everything from the soldiers' medical records and tissue samples to soil, water and air samples. DeFraites said infectious agents such as anthrax and smallpox also will be investigated. " Nothing's going to be ruled out, " DeFraites said. " When you go into one of these things, you keep an open mind. ... There's enough concern about these two fatal cases (occurring) in such a short period of time " to warrant the investigation. Montreal, Mo., is just south of Camdenton, near the Lake of the Ozarks. ____________________________ http://www.expatica.com/index.asp?HRSite= Virus spreads through Dutch troops 29 July 2003 AMSTERDAM — Dozens of peacekeeping Dutch soldiers stationed in the south of Iraq have caught a virus and the Defence Ministry is concerned that the number could increase to about a hundred. There are 700 Dutch soldiers stationed in the war-torn Islamic country as part of the British-led stabilisation force. The troops are patrolling the thinly populated, hot and sandy desert province of al-Muthanna that borders Saudi Arabia. A spokesman for the Marines said the troops were infected with the virus. He confirmed that military staff had anticipated the soldiers might catch a virus. " Coalition allies in Iraq have also had to contend with similar health problems, " news service Nu.nl quoted him saying on Tuesday. The vulnerability of soldiers to viruses in the Middle Eastern country is due in part to the extreme heat, the different life style encountered, new foods and a higher concentration of viruses in the air. The virus causes vomiting and diarrhoea. The Dutch Cabinet decided in June to dispatch 1,100 troops to the SFIR stabilisation force in Iraq to help secure law and order in the region. The heart of the Dutch contingent will be made up of a battalion of 650 marines, supported by a company of the engineering corps, a field hospital, military police and three Chinook transport helicopters and armoured transports. A military advisor warned the Parliament before it backed the cabinet's decision in June that troops should remain vigilant against renegade Iraqis regrouping in the province after carrying out attacks against Western soldiers. The troops are expected to remain in Iraq for six months and should any hostilities occur, the sufficiently armed and larger British force has guaranteed to offer the Dutch military support. __________________________ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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