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Deep brain mapping to isolate evidence of Gulf War syndrome
November 20, 2008Spatial statistical modeling to separate dysfunctional brain activity from 'noise'
DALLAS -Researchers at Southern Methodist University in Dallas are pioneering the use of spatial statistical modeling to analyze brain scan data from Persian Gulf War veterans, aiming to pinpoint specific areas of the their brains affected by Gulf War Syndrome.
Richard Gunst, Wayne Woodward and William Schucany, professors in SMU's Statistical Science Department, are collaborating with imaging specialists at UT Southwestern Medical Center to compare brain scans of people suffering from the syndrome with those of a healthy control group. The SMU team is working with renowned UTSW epidemiologist Dr. Robert Haley, one of the foremost experts on the syndrome.
A congressionally mandated study has revealed that one of every four veterans of the 1991 Gulf War suffers from neurological symptoms collectively referred to as Gulf War Syndrome. The Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses began work in 2002 and presented its lengthy report to Secretary of Veterans Affairs James Peake on Monday.
Persian Gulf War veterans from across the country are being tested at UTSW using a type of brain imaging called functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) while they perform tasks intended to activate specific regions of the brain. The SMU team is analyzing brain activation signals reflected from the multiple images taken of each subject's brain to determine which variations are naturally occurring and which are due to the syndrome. Previous analyses have been unable to separate real distinctions from "noise."
The SMU team's primary challenge is in identifying differences in brain activation from locations deep within the brain using measured brain signals that are weak and vary from location to location. Spatial modeling uses information from neighboring locations to strengthen the weak signals in active brain locations so the signal can be detected as real.
"Spatial modeling in brain imaging is new," Gunst said. "This has not been done the way we are doing it." Rapid technological advances in medical imaging of the human brain are imposing demands for new statistical methods that can be used to detect small differences between normal and dysfunctional brain activity, Gunst said.
Southern Methodist University
A congressionally mandated study has revealed that one of every four veterans of the 1991 Gulf War suffers from neurological symptoms collectively referred to as Gulf War Syndrome. The Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses began work in 2002 and presented its lengthy report to Secretary of Veterans Affairs James Peake on Monday.
Persian Gulf War veterans from across the country are being tested at UTSW using a type of brain imaging called functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) while they perform tasks intended to activate specific regions of the brain. The SMU team is analyzing brain activation signals reflected from the multiple images taken of each subject's brain to determine which variations are naturally occurring and which are due to the syndrome. Previous analyses have been unable to separate real distinctions from "noise."
The SMU team's primary challenge is in identifying differences in brain activation from locations deep within the brain using measured brain signals that are weak and vary from location to location. Spatial modeling uses information from neighboring locations to strengthen the weak signals in active brain locations so the signal can be detected as real.
"Spatial modeling in brain imaging is new," Gunst said. "This has not been done the way we are doing it." Rapid technological advances in medical imaging of the human brain are imposing demands for new statistical methods that can be used to detect small differences between normal and dysfunctional brain activity, Gunst said.
Southern Methodist University
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Large study confirms UK Gulf war servicemen report more ill health
The largest study of UK Gulf war servicemen, published today in BMC Public Health confirms that forces deployed to the first Gulf War report more ill health than veterans who did not serve there. Rebecca Simmons, Noreen Maconochie and Pat Doyle from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine found that Gulf war veterans were more likely to report mood swings, memory loss/lack of concentration, night sweats, general fatigue and sexual dysfunction than armed forces personnel who had not served in the Gulf. This pattern of symptom reporting is similar to that found in other studies of UK Gulf war veterans, which looked at the same population using different methods. The study confirmed
Chemistry & Industry Magazine - cover date 7 July 2003
NEWS The most toxic conflict Recent advances in the research into Gulf war syndrome means that soldiers returning from the latest conflict may be more fortunate than those returning after 1991. But how much are UK soldiers going to benefit from these advances? The UK spends a lot less than the US on research into the syndrome and unlike UK troops, those in the US are prevented, under the Feres doctrine, from suing the army for negligence for injuries sustained while on active duty. This no doubt accounts for the more open attitude to veterans' complaints in the US. And the US is putting its money where its mouth is with a $20m budget for Gulf war illnesses research promised for 2004. At the
Seventeen per cent of veterans believe they have Gulf war syndrome
Seventeen per cent of Gulf war veterans believe they have Gulf war syndrome, find researchers in this week's BMJ. The study has implications for future health protection programmes intended to protect against the threat of chemical and biological warfare. Questionnaires were sent to a large random sample of British service personnel who served in the 1991 Gulf war. Of 2961 respondents, 17% believed they had Gulf war syndrome. A combination of biological, psychological, and sociological factors were associated with this belief. For instance, these personnel were more likely to have poor health, know someone else who also believed they had the condition, and have received a high number of vacc
Science & Public Affairs - February 2001
In this month's Science & Public Affairs"¦ The government's scientific advisory committees; science in sport; depleted uranium; the future of agriculture; the Airbus super-jumbo; R&D in Finland; e-democracy; researchers' views on science communication; technology and crime prevention. Editorial Challenges and uncertainties Professor David King, Chief Scientific Adviser, discusses the role of scientific advisory committees. Professor King notes that: "if we are to take advantage of new advances in science we need wide and open discussion of both their benefits and also of worries and unintended consequences, in ways that command public confidence and trust." The advisory committees need t
Gulf War Syndrome triggered by smells of war
This explanation of Gulf War Syndrome is published today, Monday 15 November, in the British Journal of Psychology, by Dr Eamonn Ferguson and Dr Helen Cassaday of the University of Nottingham.
Gulf War Syndrome triggered by smells of war
The persistent symptoms of Gulf War Syndrome in the home years later could well be due to a sickness response to the body's immune system being conditioned to the smells, tastes and sounds of war.
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