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Table 9.3 Prevalence and odds ratios (ORs) of self-reported symptoms in the past month ordered by decreasing prevalence in the Gulf War group

	‘Mild, moderate or severe = Total Yes’						‘Moderate or severe = Yes’
	GWV	Comp grp					GWV	Comp grp
Symptom	n (%)	n (%)	Crude OR	Adj OR*	95% CI	P value	n (%)	n (%)	Adj OR*	95% CI
Feeling unrefreshed after sleep	937 (66)	862 (56)	1.5	1.6	1.3-1.8	<0.001	398 (28)	285 (18)	1.7	1.4-2.1
Fatigue	937 (66)	861 (56)	1.5	1.6	1.3-1.8	<0.001	325 (23)	243 (16)	1.6	1.3-1.9
Headaches	872 (61)	828 (54)	1.4	1.3	1.1-1.6	<0.001	291 (20)	205 (13)	1.6	1.3-2.0
Sleeping difficulties	851 (60)	753 (49)	1.6	1.6	1.4-1.9	<0.001	371 (26)	253 (16)	1.8	1.5-2.2
Irritability / outbursts of anger	808 (57)	702 (46)	1.6	1.6	1.4-1.8	<0.001	309 (22)	182 (12)	2.0	1.7-2.5
Low back pain	743 (52)	757 (49)	1.1	1.2	1.0-1.3	0.057	308 (22)	298 (19)	1.2	1.0-1.4
General muscle aches or pains	736 (52)	707 (46)	1.3	1.3	1.1-1.5	0.001	207 (15)	139 (9)	1.7	1.4-2.2
Flatulence or burping	654 (46)	624 (40)	1.3	1.3	1.1-1.5	0.001	209 (15)	141 (9)	1.6	1.3-2.1
Forgetfulness	654 (46)	520 (34)	1.7	1.7	1.5-2.0	<0.001	195 (14)	109 (7)	2.1	1.6-2.7
Difficulty finding the right word	643 (45)	543 (35)	1.5	1.6	1.4-1.8	<0.001	160 (11)	82 (5)	2.3	1.7-3.0
Loss of concentration	611 (43)	448 (29)	1.9	1.9	1.6-2.3	<0.001	144 (10)	78 (5)	2.2	1.6-2.9
Stiffness in several joints	556 (39)	518 (34)	1.3	1.3	1.1-1.5	0.001	215 (15)	175 (11)	1.4	1.2-1.8
Rash or skin irritation	510 (36)	429 (28)	1.5	1.5	1.2-1.7	<0.001	215 (15)	129 (8)	2.0	1.6-2.5
Pain, without swelling or redness, in several joints	498 (35)	453 (29)	1.3	1.3	1.1-1.5	0.001	231 (16)	197 (13)	1.3	1.1-1.6
Itchy or painful eyes	490 (35)	424 (27)	1.4	1.4	1.2-1.7	<0.001	115 (8)	88 (6)	1.4	1.1-1.9
Avoiding doing things or situations	481 (34)	362 (23)	1.7	1.7	1.5-2.1	<0.001	145 (10)	92 (6)	1.9	1.4-2.5
Shortness of breath	445 (31)	339 (22)	1.6	1.6	1.4-1.9	<0.001	103 (7)	52 (3)	2.4	1.7-3.4
Ringing in the ears	430 (30)	398 (26)	1.3	1.3	1.1-1.5	0.002	156 (11)	152 (10)	1.2	0.9-1.5
Indigestion	405 (28)	359 (23)	1.3	1.4	1.2-1.6	<0.001	128 (9)	83 (5)	1.7	1.3-2.3
Sore throat	392 (28)	353 (23)	1.3	1.3	1.1-1.6	0.001	67 (5)	47 (3)	1.6	1.1-2.4
Feeling distant or cut off from others	372 (26)	244 (16)	1.9	2.0	1.6-2.4	<0.001	121 (9)	77 (5)	1.9	1.4-2.5
Diarrhoea	368 (26)	258 (17)	1.7	1.7	1.4-2.1	<0.001	94 (7)	42 (3)	2.4	1.6-3.5
Feeling jumpy / easily startled	346 (24)	229 (15)	1.9	1.9	1.5-2.2	<0.001	128 (9)	72 (5)	2.1	1.6-2.9
Loss of interest in sex	342 (24)	288 (19)	1.4	1.4	1.2-1.7	<0.001	145 (10)	96 (6)	1.8	1.3-2.4
Chest pain	328 (23)	277 (18)	1.4	1.4	1.1-1.6	0.001	51 (4)	49 (3)	1.1	0.8-1.7
Distressing dreams	306 (22)	206 (13)	1.8	1.8	1.5-2.2	<0.001	116 (8)	56 (4)	2.5	1.8-3.6
Rapid or pounding heart beat	304 (21)	218 (14)	1.7	1.6	1.4-2.0	<0.001	77 (5)	42 (3)	2.1	1.4-3.1
Tingling or burning sensation in hands or feet	294 (21)	237 (15)	1.4	1.5	1.2-1.8	<0.001	88 (6)	60 (4)	1.7	1.2-2.4
Night sweats which soak the bed sheets	290 (20)	176 (11)	2.0	2.0	1.6-2.5	<0.001	113 (8)	59 (4)	2.2	1.6-3.1
Increased sensitivity to noise	277 (20)	213 (14)	1.5	1.6	1.3-2.0	<0.001	98 (7)	72 (5)	1.6	1.2-2.2
Dry mouth	266 (19)	221 (14)	1.4	1.4	1.1-1.7	0.001	64 (5)	38 (2)	1.9	1.2-2.8
Stomach cramps	261 (18)	187 (12)	1.6	1.6	1.3-1.9	<0.001	83 (6)	40 (3)	2.2	1.5-3.3
Persistent cough	240 (17)	243 (16)	1.1	1.1	0.9-1.3	0.358	77 (5)	66 (4)	1.3	0.9-1.8
Wheezing	230 (16)	168 (11)	1.6	1.5	1.2-1.9	<0.001	62 (4)	33 (2)	2.0	1.3-3.1
Increased sensitivity to light	224 (16)	172 (11)	1.5	1.5	1.2-1.9	<0.001	76 (5)	43 (3)	1.8	1.2-2.7
Unintended weight gain greater than 4kg	216 (15)	170 (11)	1.5	1.5	1.2-1.8	0.001	101 (7)	61 (4)	2.0	1.4-2.7
Mouth ulcers	212 (15)	167 (11)	1.5	1.5	1.2-1.9	<0.001	33 (2)	17 (1)	2.2	1.2-3.9
Intolerance to alcohol	209 (15)	134 (9)	1.8	1.8	1.4-2.3	<0.001	85 (6)	48 (3)	2.0	1.4-2.9
Loss of, or decrease in, appetite	204 (14)	167 (11)	1.4	1.4	1.1-1.7	0.006	58 (4)	32 (2)	2.1	1.4-3.4
Shaking	203 (14)	122 (8)	1.9	1.9	1.5-2.4	<0.001	45 (3)	29 (2)	1.6	1.0-2.6
Dizziness, fainting or blackouts	201 (14)	131 (8)	1.8	1.7	1.4-2.2	<0.001	41 (3)	16 (1)	2.8	1.5-5.0
Toothache	200 (14)	179 (12)	1.3	1.2	1.0-1.5	0.070	52 (4)	32 (2)	1.7	1.1-2.7
Problems with sexual functioning	196 (14)	149 (10)	1.5	1.7	1.3-2.1	<0.001	76 (5)	45 (3)	2.3	1.5-3.4
Skin infections eg. boils	186 (13)	155 (10)	1.4	1.3	1.1-1.7	0.012	54 (4)	34 (2)	1.7	1.1-2.7
Loss of sensation in hands or feet	185 (13)	138 (9)	1.5	1.6	1.3-2.1	<0.001	66 (5)	41 (3)	2.0	1.3-2.9
Passing urine more often	172 (12)	151 (10)	1.3	1.3	1.0-1.7	0.020	60 (4)	37 (2)	1.8	1.2-2.8
Loss of balance or coordination	161 (11)	114 (7)	1.6	1.6	1.3-2.1	<0.001	29 (2)	27 (2)	1.2	0.7-2.1
Constipation	155 (11)	139 (9)	1.2	1.3	1.0-1.7	0.027	38 (3)	23 (1)	1.8	1.0-3.0
Feeling feverish	143 (10)	106 (7)	1.5	1.5	1.2-2.0	0.002	32 (2)	21 (1)	1.8	1.0-3.2
Nausea	139 (10)	114 (7)	1.4	1.4	1.1-1.8	0.016	37 (3)	17 (1)	2.5	1.4-4.5
Feeling disorientated	137 (10)	76 (5)	2.1	2.1	1.6-2.8	<0.001	24 (2)	7 (<1)	4.4	1.8-10.4
Double vision	119 (8)	72 (5)	1.9	2.0	1.5-2.7	<0.001	29 (2)	6 (1)	2.2	1.2-4.1
Tender or painful swelling of lymph glands in neck, armpit or groin	115 (8)	104 (7)	1.2	1.2	0.9-1.5	0.301	35 (2)	15 (1)	2.3	1.2-4.2
Increased sensitivity to smells or odours	102 (7)	57 (4)	2.0	2.1	1.5-2.9	<0.001	32 (2)	17 (1)	2.1	1.2-3.9
Difficulty speaking	95 (7)	68 (4)	1.6	1.5	1.1-2.1	0.013	18 (1)	9 (1)	2.3	1.0-5.2
Lump in throat	89 (6)	68 (4)	1.5	1.5	1.0-2.0	0.026	31 (2)	9 (1)	3.8	1.8-8.1
Vomiting	73 (5)	64 (4)	1.3	1.2	0.8-1.7	0.369	20 (1)	11 (1)	1.9	0.9-4.2
Loss of control over bladder or bowels	62 (4)	40 (3)	1.7	1.8	1.2-2.8	0.004	12 (1)	7 (<1)	2.2	0.8-5.8
Unintended weight loss greater than 4kg	55 (4)	47 (3)	1.3	1.2	0.8-1.9	0.304	23 (2)	14 (1)	1.8	0.9-3.6
Pain on passing urine	50 (4)	34 (2)	1.6	1.6	1.0-2.5	0.041	8 (1)	3 (<1)	3.5†	0.9-13.6
Burning sensation in the sex organs	49 (3)	24 (2)	2.3	2.2	1.3-3.7	0.002	8 (1)	6 (<1)	1.5	0.5-4.6
Skin ulcers	41 (3)	27 (2)	1.7	1.7	1.0-2.9	0.032	6 (<1)	8 (1)	0.8	0.3-2.2
Seizures or convulsions	5 (<1)	4 (<1)	1.4	1.5†	0.4-5.8	0.544	1 (<1)	3 (<1)	0.5†	0.05-4.9

* Odds ratios are adjusted for service type, rank and age (< 20, 20-24, 25 to 34, >= 35 years), education and marital status.
† Odds ratios are adjusted for service type, rank and age (<25 vs >=25 years).  Confidence intervals and P values for adjusted odds ratios were obtained using exact methods for stratified 2x2 tables.

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