Epidemiologic Investigation of Health Effects in Air Force Personnel FollowingExposure to Herbicides. Extract Reproductive Outcomes Executive Summary introduction and Conclusions

摘要

The Air Force is conducting a 20-year prospective study of veterans of OperationRanch Hand, the unit responsible for aerial spraying of herbicides in Vietnam from 1962 to 1971. A comparison group of Air Force veterans who served in Southeast Asia (SEA) during the same period who were not occupationally exposed to herbicides was selected. The study, called the Air Force Health Study (AFHS), is in its tenth year and is designed to determine whether exposure to the herbicides or their contaminant, 2,3,37,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (dioxin), has adversely affected the health, survival or reproductive outcomes of Ranch Hands. This report summarizes the findings of an investigation of reproductive outcomes of the 791 Ranch Hands and 942 Comparisons for whom a dioxin level had been determined by August, 1991. These men have fathered 5,489 pregnancies including 4,514 live births. These men are a subset of all Ranch Hands (n=1,098) and Comparisons (n=1,549) who have fathered 8,263 pregnancies and 6,792 live births. All data in this report have been verified by review of birth certificates, newborn clinic records, health records and death certificates. The birth defect status of each child was verified through the age of 18. Epidemiology; Reproductive Outcome; Dioxin.