Characterization of Fibromylagia Syndrome in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom Soldiers Treated at Brooke Army Medical Center Subsequent to Post-deployment Examination

Abstract

This study’s purpose was to characterize fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) within a military population; specifically the Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) cohort treated post-deployment at Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) during fiscal years 2004-2006. Retrospective and anonymous data were retrieved from BAMC’s database for Global War On Terrorism (GWOT) for all OIF/OEF military personnel treated at BAMC for any diagnosis during the fiscal years of 2004-2006. Frequencies were analyzed for the following diagnoses: FMS, PTSD, adjustment disorders, collapsed variables including PTSD collapsed with stress disorders and brief/acute PTSD, and FMS collapsed with soft-tissue disorders, certain physical disorders including infectious and parasitic disease, musculoskeletal disorders, autoimmune or systemic disorders, burn, cervicalgia, and soft-tissue disorders. Results suggest that increased rates of FMS exist within military populations, along with a high rate of musculoskeletal disorders, as well as inflated rates of PTSD, burn, infectious disease, soft-tissue disorder, and adjustment disorders. Based on these results, services within the military such as combat exposure may play a role in the development of diagnoses that are associated with FMS and have been implicated as précipitants or potential etiologies in the development of FMS.