SAN DIEGO, Sep 16, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- Members of the U.S. military
exposed to combat multiple times were more likely to self-report high blood
pressure than non-combatants, researchers say.
Lead author Nisara S. Granado, an epidemiologist at the Department of Defense
Center for Deployment Health Research at the Naval Health Research Center in San
Diego, Calif., and colleagues analyzed 36,061 service members, including a
sub-group of 8,829 deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan
2001-03.
After a three-year follow-up, the researchers found:
-- Deployed service members who reported multiple combat exposures were 33
percent more likely to self-report high blood pressure than those who did not
report combat exposures.
-- Those deployed but not exposed to combat were 23 percent less likely to
self-report hypertension compared to those not deployed, possibly because
deployers are generally healthier than non-deployers.
-- Among deployed personnel, non-Hispanic blacks were 97 percent more likely to
self-report hypertension than non-Hispanic whites, while Hispanics were 50
percent more likely than non-Hispanic whites to report hypertension.
The findings are published in Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart
Association.
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Copyright 2009 by United Press International