Herbicide Exposure, Vietnam Service, and Hypertension Risk in Army Chemical Corps Veterans

OBJECTIVE:We examined hypertension risk in Army Chemical Corps (ACC) veterans who sprayed defoliant in Vietnam. METHODS:We analyzed data from the 2013 health survey of 3086 ACC veterans and investigated the association between self-reported physician-diagnosed-hypertension (SRH) and herbicide-spray-...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of occupational and environmental medicine 2016-11, Vol.58 (11), p.1127-1136
Main Authors: Cypel, Yasmin S., Kress, Amii M., Eber, Stephanie M., Schneiderman, Aaron I., Davey, Victoria J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Cohort Studies
Herbicides
Herbicides - adverse effects
Human exposure
Humans
Hypertension
Hypertension - epidemiology
Male
Middle Aged
Occupational Exposure - adverse effects
Original Article
Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins - blood
Risk Factors
Veterans
Vietnam
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Summary:OBJECTIVE:We examined hypertension risk in Army Chemical Corps (ACC) veterans who sprayed defoliant in Vietnam. METHODS:We analyzed data from the 2013 health survey of 3086 ACC veterans and investigated the association between self-reported physician-diagnosed-hypertension (SRH) and herbicide-spray-history adjusting for Vietnam-service-status, rank, age, tobacco/alcohol use, race, and body mass index (BMI). Spray-history was verified against serum 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) (n = 636). SRH was confirmed by blood pressure (BP) measurement by trained medical technicians and medical record reviews. RESULTS:Herbicide-spray-history (ORadjusted[95%confidence interval {CI}] = 1.74[1.44,2.11]) and Vietnam-service-status (ORadjusted = 1.26[1.05,1.53]) were significantly associated with SRH. The association was highest when comparing Vietnam-service-sprayers to non-Vietnam-service-nonsprayers (ORadjusted = 2.21[1.76,2.77]). Serum TCDD was highest for Vietnam-service-sprayers. Mean systolic BPs were significantly higher among veterans with SRH than those without (P ≤ 0.001). Medical records and SRH overall agreement was 89%. CONCLUSION:Occupational herbicide exposure history and Vietnam-service-status were significantly associated with hypertension risk.
ISSN:1076-2752
1536-5948
DOI:10.1097/JOM.0000000000000876