Stressors, personality traits, and coping of Gulf War veterans with chronic fatigue

Objectives: preliminary surveys of Persian Gulf veterans revealed a significant prevalence of self-reported symptoms consistent with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). The purpose of this study was to compare self-reported life stressors, combat, and chemical exposures, personality and coping between Gulf War veterans with CFS and healthy veterans.Methods: following a complete physical, psychiatric, and neuropsychological evaluation, 45 healthy veterans, 35 veterans with CFS and co-morbid psychiatric disorder, and 23 veterans with CFS and no co-morbid psychiatric disorder completed questionnaires assessing war and non-war-related life stressors, self-reports of environmental exposure (e.g. oil well fires, pesticides), personality, and coping.Results: measures of personality, self-reported combat and chemical exposures, and negative coping strategies significantly differentiated healthy veterans from those with CFS.Conclusion: a biopsychosocial model of veterans' illness was supported by the fact that personality, negative coping strategies, life stress after the war, and environmental exposures during the war were significant predictors of veterans' current physical function.