Diseases Caused By Vietnam Conflict

By Quinton Jefferson

What is Agent Orange

• name given to a blend of herbicides the U.S. military sprayed from 1961 to 1971 to

• remove plants and leaves from foliage in Vietnam that provided enemy cover. The name

“Agent Orange” came from the orange identifying stripe around the 55-gallon drums in which it was stored.

• The U.S. military sprayed other herbicide combinations in the so-called Rainbow herbicides program

• identified by the color of their storage drums, including Agent White and Agent Blue. Agent Orange was the blend used most widely. ( What Agent Orange is publichealth.va.gov )

Ingredients

• The Agent Orange herbicide combination contained minute traces of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (also known as TCDD or dioxin), which has been shown to cause a variety of illnesses in laboratory animals.

• The two active ingredients in Agent Orange were equal amounts of:

• 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D)• 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T), containing

minute traces of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (What Agent Orange Is ( What Agent Orange is publichealth.va.gov )

Cancers Caused by Agent Orange• Prostate Cancer-Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate, a small

gland in the male reproductive system.

• Respiratory Cancer-Respiratory cancers are cancers of the lung, larynx, trachea, and bronchus

• Non Hodgkin's Lymphoma-Hodgkin's lymphoma is a type of cancer of the lymph glands and other lymphatic tissue, which are part of the body’s immune system that help to fight infection and disease.

• Multiple Myeloma-Multiple myeloma is a cancer of plasma cells, which are a specific kind of white blood cells found in bone marrow. It is called multiple myeloma, because the cancer is characterized by plasma cell tumors in bones in multiple parts of the body.

Birth Deffects • Agent Orange, resulting in 400,000 deaths and disabilities,

and 500,000 children born with birth defects• Spina Binfida- A neural tube birth defect that results from

the failure of the bony portion of the spine to close properly in the developing fetus during early pregnancy.-

• And in some case babies feet, hands and limbs are twisted and deformed

Vietnam Vets Compensation • Veterans may be eligible for disability compensation if

they have a service-related disability and were discharged under other than dishonorable conditions.

• disability payments are made under a little-known provision from three decades ago that entitles vets to monthly benefits for sexually transmitted diseases they contracted, or simply aggravated, while in the service -- even if they became infected on their own time years ago.

• Under the rule Congress created at the end of the Vietnam War, even genital warts are considered a "service-connected" condition entitling a vet to the same $100 or more a month for the rest of his or her life that those who suffer wounds or battle injuries can receive.

Other Vietnam Killers• Tropical diseases were frequent. Malaria was the most

important. Over 40,000 cases of Malaria were reported in Army troops alone between 1965 and 70 with 78 deaths.

• Diarrheal diseases were also common and cholera was epidemic in Vietnam but not a single case of cholera was seen in the highly immunized, well nourished US troops.

• Meliodosis was a relatively rare disease caused by Pseudomonas pseudomallei but well publicized after 8 of the 29 cases diagnosed in 1966 died

Veterans Addiction • In the spring of 1971, two members of

Congress released an alarming report alleging that 15 percent of U.S. servicemen in Vietnam were addicted to HEROIN. The armed forces were attempting to cope with the drug problem by combining military discipline with amnesty

Casualties Statistics• Hostile deaths: 47,359

• Non-hostile deaths: 10,797

• Total: 58,156 (including men formerly classified as MIA and Mayaguez casualties).

• Highest state death rate: West Virginia--84.1. (The national average death rate for males in 1970 was 58.9 per 100,000).

• WIA: 303,704 - 153,329 required hospitalization, 50,375 who did not.Severely disabled: 75,000, 23,214 were classified 100% disabled. 5,283 lost limbs, 1,081 sustained multiple amputations. Amputation or crippling wounds to the lower extremities were 300% higher than in WWII and 70% higher than in Korea. Multiple amputations occurred at the rate of 18.4% compared to 5.7% in WWII.

• MIA: 2,338

• POW: 766, of whom 114 died in captivity.

• Draftees vs. volunteers: 25% (648,500) of total forces in country were draftees. (66% of U.S. armed forces members were drafted during WWII)

• Draftees accounted for 30.4% (17,725) of combat deaths in Vietnam.

• National Guard: 6,140 served; 101 died.

Credit to

• http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange/

• http://www.historyplace.com/unitedstates/vietnam/

• http://www.lewispublishing.com/orange.htm