Still looking for replies to my other messages, thanks. But I wanted to know if any other GWV has these little red spots all over their body. The VA dematologist told me that they are normal everyone can get them but we don't know what they are and where they come from. The strange thing is this, family members who never had these spots before seem to have them now. For example my new wife who is from Europe didn't have them, but after a year of marriage she starts getting them. Maybe it's a coincidence but any vets out there with a similar problem would be helpful.

Force
Are these little red dots look like like littel bubles.Mine pop when they get to big.But they are not big at all just little red dots with like a miniture blister.They itch and burn.
Mark A
USN

mark a,

Most of them are really small and flush with the skin, but a couple have raised above the skin and look like they could pop. However none of mine have popped. And they don't really itch or burn. I do get severe ithching on my feet and legs though. So much so that often I scratch until I start bleeding. And my wife has started getting it to. She went to the doctor and they said it problably was a fungus. I don't know if it is the same red dots but it sounds similar. Thanks for the reply, to bad there isn't a picture on the internet of these type of things.

Force

My husband has the red bumps all over. He did not have them before going to Saudi. He has them on his arms and shoulders. He has never gone to have them checked out, because he hasn't had any problems with them.

Lisa1171, have you noticed anyone else in contact with your husband getting those red bumps? If your husband does get them checked out, write me back and let me know what the drs said! Thanks

Force

I have never gotten the bumps on myself and the people we know do not have them. It kind of sounds strange, but the bumps come and go sometimes. It weirds me out more than him. He said they don't bother him. I still think it wouldn't hurt to get them looked at. Do you have them and if so where are they located? His are arms, shoulders and back.

Lisa1171, My red spots are on my arms, legs, chest and back. They don't really bother me, but i've noticed my wife is getting them. Like I said before, your husband should definitely get them checked out. The VA drs told me that they are normal things, however they don't know what causes them or why people get them. I didn't have them before the Gulf War, but now I do. So I guess for right now it's up in the air.

I think we're talking about two separate issues, both of which are related to Gulf War Illness.

That itching part is fungus, no doubt about my personal experience with it. And if it's your skin that's breaking out, then it's merely a shadow of a reflection of what's going on inside your body. Fungus exposure was three-fold. And that's just what we know about.

U.S. sold Candida Albicans to Iraq. And that stuff was powdered all over the Desert after our planes bombed all those labs in Iraq. The Russians sold "Red" fungus to the Iranians, who probably powdered the Iraqis during the Iran-Iraq war. That stuff itches and is difficult to get rid of.

There's also naturally existing fungus in Desert environments because the environment is off-balanced. It can't grow anything because it's so messed up.

Treatment is definitely anti-fungals. But you need a blood test to tell you what you've got and how bad you've got it. A sure sign that you've got fungus in a bad way is that you pass it on to your spouse.

Treatment comes in the form of prescription medicines: Sporanox, Diflucan, Mycelex, (Ketaconazole injections or IV if you can get it). When you take the medicine, your spouse must take it, too. Or you'll bounce it back and forth for thankless years (Been there, done that).

As for the red bumps that don't itch, you may be talking about chemical exposure. When I worked for a major petroleum company, I learned that little children in Latin America and northern South America develop skin disorders because of the bug sprays and defoliants (petro-chemicals) used by farmers there.

The red bumps come and go at first. But then, they burst open and never heal. They continuously scab over and "peel". The good thing about children is that those chemical exposure sites can be surgically removed. And the child recovers with hardly a scar, as long as the physician was careful to make small stitches both below and above the surgical site.

The bad thing about Gulf War vets is that they are too damaged to survive the surgery if, in fact, that's what they need to stop the process. To the best of my ability, I have not been able to connect this type of damage communicating to spouses.

I do know that I have chemical exposure (the bumps and "peeling") across the top of my scalp where one of the top straps to my protective mask touched my scalp. The exposure damage gets worse every year. I first noticed the "exposure" in 1993, long before Gulf War Illness had a name.

My damaged tissue just exploded this past winter. And now about a third of my scalp is damaged. My hair was already fine and thin. It's getting thinner. My spouse has one area of exposure, but it could be related to something else. We did not know each other during or shortly after the war.

As for pictures, I think you can explore the web to find chemically damaged children in South America. The American Dermatology Physicians organizations should have websites that will allow you to pull up pictures. They also define what types of exposures cause what types of skin damage.

It's sad to think that the goverment is hiding something. I to suffer from endless blister type liesions on my face. Till of late I have yet to have them checked. When the article came out in the Gulf War reviews, about spouses and children participation in November of 2001, I had my husband request the registry forms. Sadly to say it took countless calls and 1 yr., later to get these forms. I am scheduled for an appointment to have this looked at next week.
On discussing this with my husband he informed me he was treated in Desert Storm for this parisite. When he returned to the states he had gone in for the same thing, only to discover that all his medical records from Desert Storm had been lost or dissapeared.
Yes, needless to say I had come in contact with the sand from over there just from washing his cloths. It can pass on to spouses through open wounds. I know I have it now. At first it only appeared once about every 6 mnths. But of late has appeared and not gone away. There is itching, burning, scarring and intensifies when my hair or siliva touches it. What I have learned about this skin disorder is that there is a core underneath that blister. If it is not removed it will not go away. Once this core is removed it will ither not show it's ugly head again for a few mnths., or will appear again in different places of your skin. This past episode I have had since before April this year. On a lighter note, my husband has not had a return of this dissorder. The only thing we can figure is due to the fact he was nearly killed last year and lost almost 3/4 of his blood, so basically had a transfusion. I'm sure it threatens him to know that I carry this now and should he touch an open wound he may get this again.
I have been looking at different sites on Desert Storm Illnesses, only to find out that everything I have been tested for has (other then this blister) came out negitive from A-Z.

Don't give up and don't let the goverment slid this under the table....I'm not

[This message has been edited by moderator2 (edited 10-17-2002).]

[This message has been edited by luvinmyheart (edited 10-18-2002).]

Luvin,

I don't think that the spots, as I refer to them, are the same as what you guys have. Maybe mine are normal. I have a couple that are on my chest that look like they could pop but the rest are small and flush with my skin. The VA drs have said that these are things anyone can get, but they don't know what they are or where they come from. Typical huh? Keep up the fight!


[This message has been edited by moderator2 (edited 10-17-2002).]

Leishmaniasis, is one of the things that came accross in my search for illnesses or diseases of (Desert Storm)I have been looking up. Some of the signs and symptoms my husband still carries. They do have images of this skin disorder on most health sites. I had forgot in my previous subject. But does sound like and seems to be what you may all speak of. Good luck in your search.

Leishmaniasis may be part of your problem. But remember that the most transmissable skin irritant is, indeed, fungus. And the varieties of fungus coming from that toxic wasteland are numerous.

There's wide varieties of Candida Albicans, Red Fungus, naturally existing undefined species of fungus naturally existing in a desert land.

Understand that fungus has a thousand levels of infection. They start out mild and just at the skin level. But if you've got full-blow sores or your spouse is starting to itch, you really need to get some serious antifungal capsules available by prescription only.

Leishmaniasis can usually be cured with one course of antibiotics. Unless it's gone to the next level. Antibiotics are far easier to get than antifungals. Either way, your health situation gets no better without medication.