No serologic evidence of an association found between Gulf War service andMycoplasma fermentans infection

Occult occupational infection with Mycoplasma fermentans has been proposed as a cause for illness among Persian Gulf War veterans. Symptom data and se ra from a 1994-1995 cross-sectional survey of Navy Seabees were used to sel ect symptomatic and asymptomatic Gulf War veterans and nondeployed veterans to evaluate this hypothesis. Survey sera from 96 Seabees were matched to p rewar (before September 1990) archived sera. Immunoblot serologic analyses were performed for M. fermentans in a controlled, blinded fashion. Both Gul f War veterans and nondeployed veterans had prewar and postwar serologic ev idence of M. fermentans infection consistent with natural infection data. A mong study subjects collectively, and stratified by Gulf War service, none of the immunoblot banding profiles (prewar or postwar) or their changes ove r time were associated with postwar symptoms. These serologic data do not s upport the hypothesis that Gulf War veterans have experienced Gulf War-rela ted morbidity from M. fermentans infection.