1 15 1 https://www.nal.usda.gov/exhibits/speccoll/files/original/df8d66e51c40779e9d002e14c30e9caf.pdf a7bbaebbe750a995b0af55bc3d939eb6 PDF Text Text Item ID Number 01735 Author Keller, Carl A. Corporate Author RODOrt/ArtlOlO TitlO Typescript: Review of Vietnam Veterans Mortality Study, September 14,1987 Journal/Book Title oooo Month/Day Color Number of Images n 1 Doscripton Notes Monday, June 11, 2001 Page 1786 of 1793 �REVIEW OF VIETNAM VETERANS MORTALITY STUDY A study of proportionate mortality among U.S. Army and Marine veterans who served between July 4, 1965 and March 1, 1973 and died before March 1, 1982 was reported by the Veterans Administration. The study included 19708 Army and 4527 Marine veterans who had served in Vietnam and 22904 Army and 3781 Marine veterans who had not served in Southeast Asia during tis period. The study included a random sample of about one-third of the potentially elligible veterans who had died during this period. The selection of study subjects and recovery of information on them appears to have been unbiased and appropriate. The major findings from this study included a statistically significant excess of accidental and drug related deaths and paucity of suicides among Army veterans who had served in Vietnam compared to those who had not served in Southeast Asia. In addition, there was a statistically significant excess of lung cancer and non-Hodgkins lymphoma among Marine veterans who had served in Vietnam compared to those who had not. Several other findings were not mentioned in either the conclusions nor in the narrative, but are evident in the tables. These include a statisically significant decrease in mortality due to genitourinary diseases and cancer of the extra-cranial nervous system among Army Vietnam veterans. In addition, there appears to have been a signifcant decrease in cancer deaths among enlisted Army veterans with only one tour of duty in Vietnam, and among similar Marine veterans before 1975. There was also a significant increase in accidental poisonings among enlisted Marine Vietnam veterans dying before 1975. The authors computed Standardized Proportionate Mortality Ratios (SPMR) and tested with the Chi-Square statistic (not presented in the tables). According to the reference used to justify this procedure (ref # 13), Professor Monson suggests using the Poisson approximation of the variance of the expected deaths, i.e., that the expected number of deaths approximates the variance. If this procedure is applied to the information which can be deduced from the observed number of deaths and the SPMR as given in the tables, several additional SPMRs appear to be statistically significant. These include an excess of all cancer deaths among Marine veterans who served in Vietnam, particularly single tour enlisted Marines after 1975. Other possibly significant findings would include a decrease in deaths due to infectious diseases and diseases of the blood, an increase in deaths due to musculoskeletal and connective tissue diseases, and a decrease in deaths from thyroid cancer and non-Hodgkins lymphoma among Army Vietnam veterans. While there is no way to determine which statistical procedures are "correct", these results indicate that more significant findings are available in these data than have been dicussed in the manuscript. While this does not make it any easier to interpret the results, it does serve to point out the selective nature of the findings which have been emphasized in the manuscript. In particular, the inclusion of one-seventh of the abstract and considerable dicussion in the narrative to Agent Orange is misleading. Other possible explanations for the findings should receive relatively more emphasis. Carl A. Keller, Ph.D. Epidemiologist, NIEHS � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Alvin L. Young Collection on Agent Orange Description An account of the resource <p style="margin-top: -1em; line-height: 1.2em;">The Alvin L. Young Collection on Agent Orange comprises 120 linear feet and spans the late 1800s to 2005; however, the bulk of the coverage is from the 1960s to the 1980s and there are many undated items. The collection was donated to Special Collections of the National Agricultural Library in 1985 by Dr. Alvin L. Young (1942- ). Dr. Young developed the collection as he conducted extensive research on the military defoliant Agent Orange. The collection is in good condition and includes letters, memoranda, books, reports, press releases, journal and newspaper clippings, field logs and notebooks, newsletters, maps, booklets and pamphlets, photographs, memorabilia, and audiotapes of an interview with Dr. Young.</p> <p>For more about this collection, <a href="/exhibits/speccoll/exhibits/show/alvin-l--young-collection-on-a">view the Agent Orange Exhibit.</a></p> Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Box The box containing the original item. 066 Folder The folder containing the original item. 1785 Series The series number of the original item. Series III Subseries III Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Keller, Carl A. Title A name given to the resource Typescript: Review of Vietnam Veterans Mortality Study, September 14, 1987 Subject The topic of the resource VA Mortality Study mortality trends study criticism cancer risk assessment ao_seriesIII