Table 1.
Demographic, military and deployment characteristics of Caucasian GWI cases and controls, data are n (%). p-values were obtained by Chi-square, Fisher’s exact or Mann–Whitney U tests comparing the two groups.
| Cases (n = 170) * | Controls (n = 34) | p | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sex | |||
| Male | 143 (84) | 31 (91) | 0.43 |
| Female | 27 (16) | 3 (9) | |
| Age (years) | |||
| 43–49 | 59 (35) | 10 (29) | 0.56 |
| 50–59 | 91 (54) | 17 (50) | |
| 60–69 | 17 (10) | 6 (18) | |
| 70+ | 3 (2) | 1 (3) | |
| Median age (years) | 51 | 53 | 0.15 |
| Highest Education level | 0.93 | ||
| High school or GED | 8 (5) | 2 (6) | |
| Some college or training after high school | 85 (50) | 15 (44) | |
| 4 year degree | 35 (21) | 8 (24) | |
| Advanced degree | 42 (25) | 9 (26) | |
| Rank in 1990 * | 0.006 | ||
| Enlisted | 150 (89) | 23 (68) | |
| Officer | 19 (11) | 11 (32) | |
| Branch of Service in 1990 * | 0.59 | ||
| Army | 114 (67) | 24 (70) | |
| Navy | 16 (9) | 5 (15) | |
| Air Force | 11 (7) | 2 (6) | |
| Marines | 28 (17) | 3 (9) | |
| Service Component in 1990 * | 0.96 | ||
| Regular (Active Component) | 126 (75) | 26 (76) | |
| Reserves | 31 (18) | 6 (18) | |
| National Guard | 12 (7) | 2 (6) | |
| Gulf War Deployment: Service period in theater * | |||
| Departed prior to Jan 1991 | 3 (2) | 1 (3) | 0.25 |
| Present Jan-Feb 1991, departed by May 1991 | 119 (70) | 24 (70) | |
| Present Jan-Feb 1991, departed after May 1991 | 35 (21) | 5 (15) | |
| Arrived in March 1991 or later | 12 (7) | 4 (12) | |
| Median number of months in theater | 5 | 6 | 0.94 |
* n = 169 for Cases group.