Post-combat syndromes from the Boer war to the Gulf war: a cluster analysis of their nature and attribution.

Objectives: To discover whether post-combat syndromes have existed after modern wars and what relation they bear to each other.

Design: Review of medical and military records of servicemen and cluster analysis of symptoms.

Data Sources: Records for 1856 veterans randomly selected from war pension files awarded from 1872 and from the Medical Assessment Programme for Gulf war veterans.