Demographic and exposure characteristics of US military service members after their first deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan between 2008 and 2009
| Variable | Cases* (n=68) | Controls (n=823) | p Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mean age (SD) | 28.5 (6.8) | 27.5 (7.6) | 0.26 |
| Gender | |||
| Female | 4 (6%) | 244 (30%) | <0.001 |
| Male | 64 (94%) | 579 (70%) | |
| Race | |||
| Black | 15 (22%) | 167 (20%) | 0.72 |
| White | 45 (66%) | 500 (61%) | |
| Other | 8 (12%) | 156 (19%) | |
| Rank | |||
| Enlisted | 60 (88%) | 702 (85%) | 0.50 |
| Officer/warrant officer | 8 (12%) | 121 (15%) | |
| Marital status | |||
| Single/other | 27 (40%) | 426 (52%) | 0.06 |
| Married | 41 (60%) | 397 (48%) | |
| Deployment region† | |||
| Afghanistan | 7 (10%) | 97 (12%) | |
| Iraq | 60 (90%) | 721 (88%) | 0.73 |
| Gastroenteritis | |||
| Any diarrhoea/vomiting | 19 (27.9%) | 154 (18.7%) | 0.07 |
| Any diarrhoea | 16 (23.5%) | 131 (15.9%) | 0.11 |
| Sought care for diarrhoea | 16 (23.5%) | 125 (15.2%) | 0.07 |
| Limited duty status—diarrhoea | 7 (10.3%) | 41 (5.0%) | 0.07 |
| Any vomiting | 9 (13.2%) | 71 (8.6%0 | 0.21 |
| Sought care for vomiting | 8 (11.8%) | 66 (8.0%) | 0.29 |
| Limited duty status—vomiting | 4 (5.9%) | 39 (4.7%) | 0.67 |
*Diagnosed at least twice with ICD-9-CM codes meeting study criteria for incident RD within 365 days.
†Excludes six personnel who deployed to both regions. Case n=67, control n=818.