The Utility of Proximity-Based Herbicide Exposure Assessment in Epidemiologic Studies of Vietnam Veterans (2008) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:
1 Introduction and Background
1 Introduction and Background
Pages 13-24
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From page 13... ...
. VA subsequently sought advice from IOM on the use of the exposure assessment model in epidemiologic studies to evaluate the long-term health Throughout this report the term "herbicide" encompasses the TCDD contaminant unless specifically stated otherwise.
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From page 14... ...
• The availability, quality, and usefulness of existing information on Vietnam veterans, including troop locations and health outcome data regarding diseases commonly associated with herbicide exposure (soft tissue sarcoma, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease, or lung and laryngeal cancer, for example) as well as those not currently linked to such exposures (e.g., testicular, colon, or skin cancer)
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From page 15... ...
Instead, the model produces metrics based on proximity to herbicide spraying that are only surrogates for exposure. Furthermore, the committee was not charged with conducting analyses using the exposure assessment model or with conducting an assessment of the scientific evidence on associations between any specific health effects and exposure to herbicides used in Vietnam.
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From page 16... ...
Air Force in aerial spraying using fixed-wing aircraft in Operation Ranch Hand. Army Chemical Corps personnel were responsible for smaller operations that included helicopter spraying as well as ground spraying using a variety of specialized and improvised equipment.
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From page 17... ...
commonly used herbicides, their principal constituents, their dates of use, and estimates of the amount sprayed. The principal defoliants were Agent Orange and Agent White, whereas crop destruction was often accomplished with Agent Blue.
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From page 18... ...
Claims for eligibility for health care services and disability compensation posed a challenge for VA: Information about the human health effects of herbicide and TCDD exposure was limited, and in most cases military service records provided no clear means to establish that a veteran had been exposed to an herbicide in Vietnam. Studying Health Effects and Herbicide Exposure Many different efforts have been pursued by Congress, federal agencies, and independent researchers to address the concerns about health effects that might result from herbicide exposure in Vietnam and to establish whether exposure occurred.
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From page 19... ...
The Current Study Congress originally sought from the IOM reviews an assessment of the increased risk that Vietnam veterans would have for conditions found to be associated with herbicide exposure. None of the review committees have been able to make quantitative assessments of this risk, in part, because credible direct or proxy measurements of Vietnam veterans' herbicide exposure have not been available.
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From page 20... ...
The first of the biennial reviews included a recommendation that this problem be addressed by an attempt to develop an exposure reconstruction model that could be considered valid for use in epidemiologic studies of veterans (IOM, 1994)
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From page 21... ...
First, it was essential to be clear about the nature of the exposure assessment model and what it does and does not claim to do. The com mittee approached the model as a means of generating a quantitative representation of opportunity for herbicide exposure, not actual environmental levels, personal exposure levels, or biological dose levels.
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From page 22... ...
THE COMMITTEE'S REPORT The remainder of the report presents the committee's findings and conclusions concerning use of the exposure assessment model and the committee's recommendations regarding epidemiologic studies that might be considered. Chapter 2 reviews the essential features of the model developed by the Stellman team.
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From page 23... ...
2002. Veterans and Agent Orange: Herbicide/dioxin exposure and acute myelogenous leukemia in the children of Vietnam veterans.
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From page 24... ...
PowerPoint presentation to the IOM Committee on Making Best Use of the v Agent Orange Reconstruction Model, Meeting 2, April 30–May 1, Washington, DC.
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