Iraq/Afghanistan war vets suffering from new respiratory condition?
Researchers propose name for diagnosis
Many soldiers returning from Iraq or Afghanistan have a newly recognized condition that leads to the need for lung function testing, reports a paper in the September Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.
Led by Dr. Anthony M. Szema of the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Northport, N.Y., the researchers are proposing the term "Iraq/Afghanistan War Lung Injury" (IAW-LI) to describe the new condition, which affects nearly one out of seven Iraq/Afghanistan veterans. "New-onset IAW-LI is common…rates of symptoms leading to a diagnosis requiring spirometry are high," the researchers write.