The impact of post-traumatic stress on quality of life and fatigue in women with Gulf War Illness

BACKGROUND: Gulf War Illness (GWI) is a chronic, multi-symptomatic disorder characterized by fatigue, muscle pain, cognitive problems, insomnia, rashes, and gastrointestinal issues affecting an estimated 30% of the ~ 750,000 returning military Veterans of the 1990–1991 Persian Gulf War. Female Veterans deployed to combat in this war report medical symptoms, like cognition and respiratory troubles, at twice the rate compared to non-deployed female Veterans of the same era. The heterogeneity of GWI symptom presentation complicates diagnosis as well as the identification of effective treatments. This is exacerbated by the presence of co-morbidities. Defining subgroups of the illness may help alleviate these complications. One clear grouping is along the lines of gender. Our aim is to determine if women with GWI can be further subdivided into distinct subgroups based on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom presentation. METHODS: Veterans diagnosed with GWI (n = 35) and healthy sedentary controls (n = 35) were recruited through the Miami Veterans Affairs Medical Health Center. Symptoms were assessed via the RAND short form health survey, the multidimensional fatigue inventory, and the Davidson trauma scale. Hierarchal regression modeling was performed on measures of health and fatigue with PTSD symptoms as a covariate. This was followed by univariate analyses conducted with two separate GWI groups based on a cut-point of 70 for their total Davidson trauma scale value and performing heteroscedastic t-tests across all measures. RESULTS: Based on the distinct differences found in PTSD symptomology regarding all health and trauma symptoms, two subgroups were derived within female GWI Veterans. Hierarchical regression models displayed the comorbid effects of GWI and PTSD, as both conditions had measurable impacts on quality of life and fatigue (ΔR(2) = 0.08–0.672), with notable differences in mental and emotional measures. Overall, a cut point analysis indicated poorer quality of life and greater fatigue within all measures for women with GWI and PTSD symptoms in comparison to those women with GWI without PTSD symptoms and healthy controls. CONCLUSIONS: Our current findings support the understanding that comorbid symptoms of GWI and PTSD subsequently result in poorer quality of life and fatigue, along with establishing the possibility of varying clinical presentations.