Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Hitting Vets at Twice the Rate as Regular Population

by Gary Davis

I am a veteran of the Vietnam War so, of course, I am a supporter of about any benefit that a vet is given, but there has been a gray area for a long time with respect to disabilities and "service-related" disabilities, and sometimes it is very difficult to ascertain the difference.
News Now 2 (WBCD-TV) has reported that one of the most terrible illnesses in existence, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often referred to as Lou Gehrig's Disease is now being considered as a service-connected disability.

ALS is a progressive illness that slowly robs its victims of all capability to move; they are completely helpless and dependent with ultimate deterioration varying from patient to patient with respect to time. It is almost always fatal.

by Carl Cronk 

The Veterans Airlift Command provides free air transportation to our wounded Heroes, Veterans and their families for medical and other compassionate purposes through a national network of volunteer aircraft owners and pilots.  Their priority are the veterans of Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom(Afghanistan).  As capacity allows their mission will extend to serve other veterans of other conflicts.

Honorary Chairman of their National Advisory Board Senator Bob Dole says "As a wounded war veteran, I know first hand how important the support of your family is in your recovery. It was only through my faith, the skill and determination of the medical staff and the loving support of my family that I was able to recover from my injuries. For those soldiers and their families who sacrifice so much for our great nation, an organization like VAC is a Godsend. 

“AL Amyloidosis”

Many questions have come in on just what is “AL Amyloidosis” that VA has now approved as presumptive to herbicide exposures.ee Larry Scott’s link at:   AL amyloidosis added as presumptive to herbicide by VA ( http://www.vawatchdog.org/08/nf08/nfJUL08/nf070308-6.htm )

Also which I have already commented on is the denial of “Hypertension” as associated by VA’s Dr. Peake and Dr. Brown who apparently do not understand what presumptive means, along with the IOM which both said that IOM could not find an association.  I believe at least I pointed out some data that clearly defines an association at: http://www.2ndbattalion94thartillery.com/Chas/hypertension1.htm

Let me comment on this hypertension issue before we discuss the amyloid protein issues by calling Dr. Peake, Dr. Brown, and the IOM totally biased against Veterans.  And no it is doubtful they have Divine intervention even though they act like they do. 

In the interest of full disclosure this paper is not about me or any claim I have. My blood pressure is OK as of now and seems to be that of a 30 year old so far.

A CALL TO ARMS TO THOSE WHO'VE LOST A LOVED ONE TO CHEMICAL EXPOSURES

TELL YOUR STORIES NOW TO THE INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE

This is a call to arms, for wives and widows!  I call upon all of you, to join in a letter writing campaign to the IOM. It is time for us to step in and tell our stories.
 
We need to shake up, their consciousness to the fact, that we are  living with a veteran or lost one, who has been or was exposed to herbicides. Our vets, are being denied due process! Let them know your stories!
 
For those who are widowed, include their date of death and Illnesses.  For those that are ill, include their illnesses and cancers.  All include the dates and bases of their service, in Vietnam, all supporting combat countries and Naval service.

Some military retirees disabled in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan pay more for health care than other retirees, and a new report recommends waiving their insurance premiums to correct the inequity.

The report Tuesday by inspectors general of the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs suggests waiving for life the Medicare Part B premiums for service members who have been medically retired and are unlikely to get another job.

Service members judged unfit for continued service after a service-related injury or illness are called "medically retired" and are eligible to continue receiving care through the military health care system. But those who don't live near VA facilities can enroll in Medicare and go to civilian providers, the report said.

Such retirees pay roughly $1,160 annually in monthly premiums until reaching the age of 65, while other retirees remain in the military health care system and don't need the Medicare plan.

A federal judge, while readily agreeing that the Department of Veterans Affairs shows a significant delay in providing medical and mental health care to soldiers returning from the Middle East — including those suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries — has dismissed a suit aimed at forcing an overhaul of the department.

Senior U.S. Judge Samuel Conti, sitting in San Francisco, late last month ruled in a landmark lawsuit that the remedy for the problems cited by the plaintiffs — national veterans organizations — lies with Congress and the VA and other federal agencies.

Conti said the plaintiffs had failed to show a “systemwide crisis” in mental-health care that would justify intervention by the courts.

At last the incurably traumatized may be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. And controversially, ecstasy may be key to taming their demons.  
By Amy Turner, The Times of London UK.

At last the incurably traumatized may be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. And controversially, the key to taming their demons is the 'killer' drug Ecstasy

An Ecstasy tablet. That's what it took to make Donna Kilgore feel alive again that and the doctor who prescribed it. As the pill began to take effect, she giggled for the first time in ages. She felt warm and fuzzy, as if she was floating. The anxiety melted away. Gradually, it all became clear: the guilt, the anger, the shame.

Before, she'd been frozen, unable to feel anything but fear for 10 years. Touching her own arms was, she says, "like touching a corpse." She was terrified, unable to respond to her loving husband or rock her baby to sleep. She couldn't drive over bridges for fear of dying, was by turns uncontrollably angry and paralyzed with numbness. When she spoke, she heard her voice as if it were miles away; her head felt detached from her body. "It was like living in a movie but watching myself through the camera lens,"she says. "I wasn't real."  (continued...)

Low approval rate for vets' chemical tests claims
By ERICA WERNER – 5 days ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Veterans Affairs Department has granted only 6 percent of health claims filed by veterans of secret Cold War chemical and germ warfare tests conducted by the Pentagon, according to figures obtained Thursday by The Associated Press.

Veterans advocates called the number appallingly low.

By comparison, about 88 percent of processed claims from Gulf War vets were granted as of last year, according to VA documents. More than 90 percent of processed claims from Iraq and Afghanistan vets were granted as of earlier this year.

In a statement the VA said it was "incorrect" to make such comparisons because of the unique circumstances of different groups of veterans.

The VA noted that most of the veterans of the chemical and germ tests ended their service more than three decades ago and a study by the advisory Institute of Medicine — dismissed by veterans as shoddily done — found no clear connection between the tests and the cancer, respiratory illnesses and other problems the veterans are now having...

GOUT:  WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

BY CAROL DUFF RN

Gout is a painful and common type of arthritis. One out of 100 will develop gout at some point. Gout is the most common cause of inflammatory arthritis in men over 40.This malady has been around for centuries and is one of the earliest described conditions which still plague humanity. 

There is an increasing prevalence of gout in the past decades which reflects an increasing health burden. The more developed countries have more incidences of gout due to a richer diet.  As an area improves in ability to attain foods that would contain purines there will be more gout diagnoses.   

Typically gout is associated with abnormally high amount of uric acid in the blood (hyperuricemia). With early intervention, careful monitoring, and patient education gout can be managed effectively...

Antidepressants used by troops signal heavy mental and psychological toll in Iraq and Afghanistan
by Mark Thompson 

Seven months after Sergeant Christopher LeJeune started scouting Baghdad's dangerous roads — acting as bait to lure insurgents into the open so his Army unit could kill them — he found himself growing increasingly despondent. "We'd been doing some heavy missions, and things were starting to bother me," LeJeune says. His unit had been protecting Iraqi police stations targeted by rocket-propelled grenades, hunting down mortars hidden in dark Baghdad basements and cleaning up its own messes. He recalls the order his unit got after a nighttime firefight to roll back out and collect the enemy dead. When LeJeune and his buddies arrived, they discovered that some of the bodies were still alive. "You don't always know who the bad guys are," he says. "When you search someone's house, you have it built up in your mind that these guys are terrorists, but when you go in, there's little bitty tiny shoes and toys on the floor — things like that started affecting me a lot more than I thought they would."  

So LeJeune visited a military doctor in Iraq, who, after a quick session, diagnosed depression. The doctor sent him back to war armed with the antidepressant Zoloft and the antianxiety drug clonazepam. "It's not easy for soldiers to admit the problems that they're having over there for a variety of reasons," LeJeune says. "If they do admit it, then the only solution given is pills."