Study debunks Gulf War bacteria theory
Antibiotic treatments did nothing, researchers say
Tuesday, July 20, 2004 Posted: 9:29 AM EDT (1329 GMT)
PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania (AP) -- A year on powerful antibiotics did nothing to relieve the chronic health problems reported by Gulf War veterans, demolishing the theory that so-called Gulf War syndrome is caused by a bacterial infection, researchers say.
The bacterial-infection theory "is off the table at this point," said Joseph F. Collins, a VA Maryland Healthcare System researcher and one of the study's authors. "It's disappointing, but the results are definitive: This is not the smoking gun."
Article: http://www.cnn.com/2004/HEALTH/conditions/07/20/sickvets.ap/index.html