- An MoD survey of 20,000 troops who served in Iraq last
year has shown continuing problems with the anthrax vaccinations they were
given, the scientist leading the study said yesterday.
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- Prof Simon Wessely said a series of studies by his team
at King's College, London, pointed to the vaccinations given to those who
served in the 1991 Gulf War as a major factor in the illnesses they subsequently
suffered. "The more vaccines you received, the more likely you were
to suffer ill-health," he told the public inquiry in Gulf war illnesses.
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- "Those who had the most vaccinations were nearly
twice as likely to get ill. We still haven't got that right. We're still
getting problems with anthrax vaccinations now."
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- The MoD admitted in October that tests shortly before
the 1991 Gulf war in which mice were given the same combination of vaccinations
given to troops produced serious side-effects. The troops were given whooping
cough vaccine to speed up the effects of the anthrax vaccine. When the
two were given to the mice "there was evidence of severe loss of condition
and weight".
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- The MoD said whooping cough vaccine was "not recommended
for use in adults and it was not licensed for use as an adjuvant [accelerant]
to the anthrax vaccine".
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- Prof Wessely said troops given the combination of whooping
cough vaccine and anthrax vaccine were 40 per cent more likely to suffer
the symptoms attributed to the so-called Gulf War Syndrome.
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- He said the term Gulf War Syndrome was incorrect since
there was no unique syndrome attributable to the Gulf War. "But that
is all a bit of a red herring," he said. "What matters is that
there is a clear Gulf War effect."
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- That has been attributed to a variety of causes including
radioactive dust from depleted uranium munitions, Iraqi chemical weapons,
organophosphate pesticides used to spray tents, and pollution from oil
well fires. But the studies carried out by Prof Wessely's team showed that
none of these was to blame.
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- The causes of the various illnesses suffered by Gulf
war veterans were "a complicated mixture" of the effect of the
vaccinations, stress of the threat of chemical or biological weapons, and
"societal pressure".
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- Prof Wessely, asked by Lord Lloyd of Berwick what he
meant by "societal pressure", pointed to the way in which troops
were discharged as part of defence cuts almost as soon as they returned
home and the MoD's initial reluctance to accept that there was a problem
with their health.
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- "There were clearly things said about Gulf War Syndrome
that were ill-advised," he said.
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- Use of the anthrax vaccine during the 2003 Iraq conflict
has been blamed for a cluster of pregnancy problems suffered by troops
who served with 33 Field Hospital or their partners. Recent pregnancies
involving members of the unit have ended in two miscarriages, three premature
births, one stillbirth and a forced termination. In each case, at least
one parent had received the anthrax vaccination.
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- The MoD, which has told those concerned they must not
discuss the issue with the press, has dismissed any suggestion that the
problems have anything to do with the anthrax vaccination. It said Prof
Wessely was not concerned about the safety of the anthrax vaccination in
use with British forces.
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