Cholinergic autonomic dysfunction in veterans with Gulf War illness: confirmation in a population-based sample.

Background: The authors of prior small studies raised the hypothesis that symptoms in veterans of the 1991 Gulf War, such as chronic diarrhea, dizziness, fatigue, and sexual dysfunction, are due to cholinergic autonomic dysfunction.

Objective: To perform a confirmatory test of this prestated hypothesis in a larger, representative sample of Gulf War veterans.

Design: Nested case-control study.

A double-blind controlled trial of a single dose naproxen and an amino acid medical food theramine for the treatment of low back pain.

To study the safety and efficacy of a new medical food (Theramine) in the treatment of low back pain, we performed a 28-day double-blind randomized controlled trial in 129 patients. Back pain was present for at least 6 weeks and was not mild. Patients were randomly assigned to receive medical food alone (n = 43), naproxen alone (250 mg/d, n = 42), or both medical food and naproxen (n = 44).

A randomized, placebo-controlled trial of an amino acid preparation on timing and quality of sleep.

This study was an outpatient, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of a combination amino acid formula (Gabadone) in patients with sleep disorders. Eighteen patients with sleep disorders were randomized to either placebo or active treatment group. Sleep latency and duration of sleep were measured by daily questionnaires.

Blunted circadian variation in autonomic regulation of sinus node function in veterans with Gulf War syndrome.

Purpose: To test the hypothesis that subtle abnormalities of the autonomic nervous system underlie the chronic symptoms reported by many Gulf War veterans, such as chronic diarrhea, dizziness, fatigue, and sexual dysfunction.

Methods: Twenty-two ill Gulf War veterans and 19 age-, sex-, and education-matched control veterans underwent measurement of circadian rhythm of heart rate variability by 24-hour electrocardiography, ambulatory blood pressure recording, Valsalva ratio testing, sympathetic skin response evaluation, sweat imprint testing, and polysomnography. Investigators were blinded to case- or control-group status.

Cardiac size, autonomic function, and 5-year follow-up of chronic heart failure patients with severe prolongation of ventricular activation.

Background: Chronic heart failure is characterized by left ventricular dilation and abnormalities of cardiac autonomic function. Up to 20% of patients with chronic heart failure have QRS prolongation, which can lead to asynchronous left ventricular contraction. We tested the hypotheses that in patients with chronic heart failure, QRS > 150 ms is a risk factor for additional abnormalities of ventricular morphology, heart rate variability, and increased mortality.