Doctor Says Symptoms of Gulf War Illness and Oil Spill Illness Are 'Identical'

Doctor Says Symptoms of Gulf War Illness and Oil Spill Illness Are 'Identical'
http://www.courthousenews.com/2012/03/20/44836.htm

"RACELAND, La. (CN) - A bayou detoxification program is helping ill coastal residents, many of whom lack health insurance nearly 2 years after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. By most accounts the treatments have helped, and thanks to donors they are free.  Michael Robichaux, an ear, nose and throat specialist, former state senator, and self-described "populist doctor" is running the clinic with chemical detox veteran Jim Woodworth of New York. Woodworth has provided the clinic with staff and funding.  Robichaux, 65, told Courthouse News in an interview that identifying illness from chemical exposure is difficult: "Nothing shows up on blood work. Nothing shows up on brain scans, nothing shows up on MRIs, anything."   Robichaux said what he is seeing appears identical to the reports of symptoms still haunting veterans exposed to toxic chemicals during the first Gulf War.  "Identical - they are identical problems," Robichaux said, picking up a 2008 report on Gulf War illness. "The symptoms are coming from different chemicals, causing the same problems: 'Association with diverse biological alterations that most prominently affects the brain and nervous system,' - exactly what I'm seeing. 'Not explained by routine medical evaluations ... symptoms that typically include a combination of memory and concentration problems, persistent headaches, fatigue and widespread pain.'"