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Agent Orange Vietnam Vets Parkinson's Disease

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Parkinson's Disease
Do you have agent orange and parkinson's?
Yes - 47.2% - 42 votes
No - 10.1% - 9 votes
Yes and I also have Type II Diabetes - 7.9% - 7 votes
Yes and I also have High Blood Pressure - 24.7% - 22 votes
Yes and I also have Type II Diabetes and High Blood presssure. - 10.1% - 9 votes
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Posted 12/23/2009 6:51 PM (GMT 0)

LindaDelJ said...
I feel your pain. I know as soon as my husband is eligible for Parkinson's benefits, the neurologist will change the diagnosis to MSA. I do not have much faith in doctors or the VA.
What is CBD? MSA is multi system atrophy.

  Corticobasal Degeneration.  I think it's in the same "parkinson's plus" category as MSA (and PSP, Pick's disease, ALS etc.)
Posted 2/9/2010 7:18 PM (GMT 0)

My father has also been disgnosed as having MSA (shy drager) syndrome.  Our previous claims for service connection have been denied.  I would love to touch base with the other people on here who are in process with claims and have a diagnosis of MSA.

please contact me at lmcnabbkv at aol dot com :-)

Posted 2/15/2010 2:23 AM (GMT 0)

@Stoney – My father (currently 63 y/o) was in Vietnam during the same time frame (3rd Bn 3rd Marines Jan 67 to Feb 68) but in Lima company in Dong Ha, Con Thien and Rock Pile.  He has been suffering with many serious illnesses since he left the service.  He tried three time to file with the VA and is now attempting to file with Disabled Americans Veterens.  Some of his diognosises include CIDP , Cardiomyopathy, and post traumatic stress, and pulmonary disease.  He was wondering if you may have served with him in the same company.  We are hopeful to find if other veterans are experiencing similar medical conditions.

 

Stoney said...
 My name is Stoneyboy and I served with 3rd Bn 3rd Marines Jan 67 to Feb 68 and I was diagnosed with PD by the VA last month.  I am 62 and was tested for more than a year before being diagnosed.

In 1967 I spent several weeks atop of the Rock Pile with about 24 other Marines and a Corpsman.  While there one day a C-130 was spraying Agent Orange to the North of us.  The plane stopped its spraying operation and begins to fly toward us. When the plane was about 30 feet directly over head we could see the Pilot, Co-Pilot and a third crewman start to laugh, then they sprayed Agent Orange directly on use.  Unlike thousands of Marines and Soldiers who were exposed with over spray, we were completely socked to the bone.  There was little to no vegetation on the Rock Pile and there no need to spray it.  It was a simple case of some *** ***s having a little fun; how about this story!

 

I will be filing a claim like the rest, but the VA doctor said agent orange was not recognized by the  VA as a cause of Parkinson's.

I would like to have any helpful info and if you run across anyone else being sprayed on the Rock Pile let me know. 

Posted 2/27/2010 7:02 PM (GMT 0)

I just discovered this site and hope you can help me...  My husband was in the Air Force--Red Horse--stationed at Utapo, Thailand from 1967-1968.  He was sent often to "unknown" areas to clear vegetation and set up  landing strips for the bombers.  He was often under attack in those "unknown" areas and believes that he and his crew were often in Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos.  BUT his DD-214 doesn't show that he was "in country" because of the unknown /secret areas he was sent to.  So the VA won't consider his health problems as AO related.  He has PTSD, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, thyroid disease, kidney and gall stones, and--diagnosed yesterday--Parkinson's Disease.  Is there anyone else out there who went TDY at that time and is experiencing similar health problems?  Thanks

Posted 3/17/2010 5:22 AM (GMT 0)

I am a viet nam era vet with Parkinsons who did not set foot in Viet Nam and therefore I am not included under the VA's Agent Orange presumption of service connection program. 

During my active service as an MP Officer,  however, I was exposed to CS gas which I understand was used in substantial amounts in Viet Nam in conjunction with defoliants and separately. Is the research behind the new policy sufficiently rigorous to discriminate the effects of Agent Orange from the effects of CS?  Is there any parallel movement to include CS exposure in the same category as Agent Orange?

 I am in the application stage and any help that you can provide will be greatly appreciated.

Don

Posted 4/13/2010 11:39 PM (GMT 0)
I just joined today and I am so glad that I found all of you. My husband was in DaNang for 1 year. He was just diagnosed with Parkinson this month. We are in the process of starting to use the VA and will be filing for benefits. We were advised to file with the help of the volunteers for Vietnam Vets after he sees the Agent Orange doctor he sees at the end of the month.

I welcome any and all advise from you that have been through so much. My personality is very codependent and after a 50 year marriage I am obsessed with helping my spouse through this difficult time.

He is on Sinemet from a private doctor. He sees the neurologist at the VA in a month.

Thanks,

Nurse

Posted 4/23/2010 10:14 PM (GMT 0)

Hatfield- In your research, did you come up with any link of Agent Orange to Complex Partial / Petit Mal Seisures?  I also have Prostate Cancer, Diabetes Melitus and have recently developed symtoms of Parkinsons.  Let me know.  Thanks, SkipD. 

Posted 4/30/2010 12:14 PM (GMT 0)

 


Date Joined Apr 2010
Total Posts : 2
Posted Today 6:06 AM (GMT -6)
Just registered and thanks to OldVet and others for taking this on. I am 63 and a Vietnam Vet who
served on PBR Mobile Base II while in the Navy, in the Delta at Tan An 1969 to1970. I was diagnosed with Parkinsons
a little over two years ago. I am scheduled to apply for disability compensation with the local VA rep
the middle of May. Since PD has been given "presumptive illness status", I should be eligible for this
compensation, I assume. I have my service records proving service, my neurologist's records stating diagnosis,
all pertinent marriage documents, birth certificates including family members. Am I missing anything. I have the
local US House of Representative on board for any help also. I have been unable to work for over two years now
and receive SS supplemental disability. I know there will be a backlog due adding PD to the presumtive list, but I
just want approval if warranted. Any recommendations would be appreciated.
Cheers,
Cobrabobby







cobrabobby
New Member















Post Edited By Moderator (yekkimo) : 4/30/2010 9:52:38 AM (GMT-6)

Posted 5/5/2010 7:47 AM (GMT 0)
My husband Rocky was in Vietnam Jan 1970 to Dec 1970.
He was diagnosed with MSA June 2009 . He applied last week for VA benefits. Will the VA include MSA as a symptom of Parkinsons ?
Posted 5/16/2010 11:33 AM (GMT 0)
I just joined today. I servedin the  USAF  from 1968 -72. I developed Parkinsons 30 years ago. When I heard that the VA was acceping the fact that agent orange could cause PD I researched the bases where i had been stationed.  I wasnot entitledto the presuption  as I had not been to viet nam.

I found much to my amazement that Clark Air Base in the Philipines was serriously contaminated with the AO herbicide from 1970 through 1975.  In that regard I found two international reports evidencing same. I was stationed there from 1970 --71. MY neurologist wrote a report indicating that he believed the my PD very likely was cuased by exposure to said contamination.

'

My quesitons are. 1 .has anyone of you had  a claim for Pd  approved by the VA that if you were not in viet nam.

                              2. how long once filed does it take to get a ruligng'

                              3. what is the level of proofthat must be met to win

                              4,. does any one have any ideas as to what i may still do to win this.

Any way thanks in advance for any help you may be able to give me.

 

Post Edited By Moderator (yekkimo) : 5/16/2010 7:16:24 AM (GMT-6)

Posted 5/20/2010 9:13 AM (GMT 0)
I have Parkinsons disease and I was stationed at Korat AB Thailand in 1974 -1976. I have found some information that indicates agent orange was use on a lot of bases in Thailand along with some pictures that show the defoliation. I also was routed through Clark AB during that time period on the way to my PCS in Thailand. I did file a claim, however like yours, it was rejected, I guess because my records and documentation do not show any evidence of exposure to agent orange. I guess though there is nothing covering those who served in other areas, where agent orange may have been used yet. I have also heard that it may have even been used in the U.S. So who knows. Maybe we'll all find out someday after it's too late for a lot of us. If you hear of anything new on this leave me a post.

neilp02
Posted 5/20/2010 9:36 AM (GMT 0)
IF YOU PROVIDE ME WITH YOU \R PERSONAL E-MAIL .I CAN SEND YOU THE LINKS TO THE TWO REPORTS REFLECTING CLARK WAS CONTAMINATED FROM 1970-75.'

BY THE WAY MY  CLAIM HAS NOT YET BEEN APPROVED.

Posted 7/24/2010 11:29 PM (GMT 0)
I have had Parkinson's for 7+ years. I submited VA clain in early april by the electronic form and sent them documentation and Doctors reports. I had an exam in June at VA. Very short one by a PA So now I wait with no real idea of time it takes to have the VA make a decision. I am in stage 4 and have SSI total disability from it. I servered in Vietnam 1966 and 67 and was exposed to agent orange on land and in the drinking water there. THe form on VA web site is not that bad to fill out but plan a few hours to do it. It's best to get your own documents together like DD214/215 with travel and base/post assignments in Vietnam and send or bring to them. And supporting medical data. I have less and less "on time" these days I take Amantadine and Stalevo and Miripex to help with symtems Feel free to email me with questions
Posted 7/28/2010 2:10 PM (GMT 0)

JJML123:

I'm interested in the two reports about herbicide usage a Clark AB.  Please send the links to [email protected]

Posted 8/16/2010 3:42 PM (GMT 0)
HELLO TO ALL VIETNAM VETS. I AM THE DAUGHTER OF A VIETNAM VET WHO SERVED IN THE ARMY FRONT LINES DURING 67-68. MY FATHER SUFFERED FROM PTSD, HEART ISSUES, PARKINSONS, AND CHRONIC PAIN ALL WHICH I FEEL IS DUE TO THE AGENT ORANGE THAT WAS SPRAYED DURING THAT TIME. HE FOUGHT FOR HIS COUNTRY AND HIS LIFE IN VIETNAM, LITTLE DID HE KNOW HE WAS GOING TO HAVE ANOTHER FIGHT ON HIS HAND AGAINST HIS OWN GOV. TO TRY AND RECEIVE BENEFITS FOR THE AGENT ORANGE THAT WAS ENGULFING HIS BODY FOR YEARS. I TRULY FEEL HE FELT THAT OUR GOV HAD TURNED THERE BACK ON HIM AND EVEN THOUGH THAT BEING SAID HE WOULD HAVE DONE IT ALL OVER AGAIN FOR THE LOVE OF HIS COUNTRY.

I WISH MY FATHER WOULD HAVE LIVED LONG ENOUGH TO HAVE SEEN THIS NEW PRESUMPTIVE DISEASE OF PARKINSONS, HEART, ETC: BUT HE PASSED AWAY IN MAY OF 95. MY FATHER WAS SO WONDERFUL. HE WAS JUST A GOOD OL COUNTRY BOY WHO LOVED BASEBALL AND FISHING AND THE COUNTRY AIR.  ALL OF THIS WAS TAKEN FROM HIM WHEN HE WENT TO VIETNAM. HE WENT IN SO YOUNG AND INNOCENT AND CAME OUT ASHAMED AND DAMAGED MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY.  HE TRIED TO WIPE AWAY THOSE FLASHBACKS OF WOMAN AND CHILDREN BEING KILLED BUT THEY SURROUNDED HIS BED AT NIGHT IN HIS NIGHTMARES LAUGHING AT HIM. I CAN STILL REMEMBER HIM AS A YOUNG CHILD YELLING OUT AT NIGHT, OR SEEING HIM ON HIS HANDS AND KNEES TO TRY AND DODGE THE BULLETS HE THOUGHT WERE COMING AT HIM. WE JUST TRIED TO LOVE HIM AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, BUT WE JUST DIDN'T REALIZE THE DEMONS THAT LIVED INSIDE HIM. I REMEMBER READING A WHILE BACK A PAPER FROM HIS PSYCHIATRIST AND HE STATED THAT MY FATHER HAD SAID, "I DON'T WANT TO LIVE TO BE OLD,  AND IF IT WEREN'T FOR MY FAMILY, I WOULDN'T HAVE LIVED AS LONG AS I HAVE".

FOR ALL THOSE FAMILIES THAT ARE LIVING WITH SOMEONE LIKE MY FATHER, I FEEL YOUR PAIN. THIS WAR THAT HAS BEEN LONG OVER FOR US IS STILL VERY MUCH LIVING IN THEM, MUCH LIKE OUR YOUNG MILITARY SOLDIERS NOW. IT ABSOLUTELY KILLS ME INSIDE, BECAUSE I FEEL I WAS CHEATED FROM MY FATHER AND HIM BEING ABLE TO WALK ME DOWN THE ISLE, AND SEE HIS FIRST BORN GRANDSON. I JUST HATE HIS LIFE ON THIS EARTH WAS FILLED WITH SO MUCH GUILT AND REGRET AND PAIN THAT COULD NOT BE OVERCOME NO MATTER HOW MUCH LOVE AND SUPPORT WE GAVE HIM.

AND FOR THOSE PEOPLE WHO THINK THAT WE ARE JUST TRYING TO BRING UP ANY DISEASE KNOWN TO MAN FOR THE AGENT ORANGE ISSUE, HOW about YOU GO AND STAND OUT IN A FIELD AND LET US SPRAY YOU DOWN WITH SOME HERBICDES, AND THE ONLY WATER YOU WILL GET WILL BE SOME CONTAMINATED WATER WITH SOME AO IN IT. AND FOR THOSE THAT MAKE COMMENTS LIKE VIETNAM VETS ARE A BUNCH OF CRYBABIES I'D LIKE TO TAKE THEM OUT IN A FIELD AND SHOOT ROUNDS BY HIM EVERY SECOND OF EVERY DAY FOR YEARS ON END.

FOR ALL THOSE VETS OUT THERE NOW I WANT TO SAY THANK YOU, THANK YOU FOR RISKING YOUR LIFE EVERY DAY FOR YEARS FOR US.

FOR THE FAMILIES OF THOSE VETS I TOO FEEL YOUR PAIN, BUT JUST LOVE THEM AND KEEP SUPPORTING THEM, AND WHEN THEY CRY OUT OR FEEL ANGER JUST BE THERE WITH ARMS WIDE open!!

AND TO THE WONDERFUL VETS LIKE "OLDVET" THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIRELESS EFFORTS TO MAKE SURE ALL VETS AND THEIR FAMILIES HAVE THE INFO THEY NEED TO GET THE BENEFITS THEY DESERVE FOR RISKING THEIR LIVES. I KNOW MY FATHER IS SMILING DOWN FROM HEAVEN TO YOU!

THANK YOU ALL FOR READING, AND GOD BLESS OUR VETS!!!!!!

DAUGHTEROFAVET

Posted 9/28/2010 1:16 AM (GMT 0)
I am stunned to run across this site...I am a Vietnam Vet, and I was recently (last week) diagnosed with Parkinson's.

Need I say how depressing this diagnosis by my neurologist might be? Obviously not to anyone who is on this thread,
I am sure. I was searching for info on PD, and among many others this site sprang up - I had never thought of the
possible association - although I am well aware of other Agent Orange and spider-hole associated diseases like ALS
that have caught the VA's attn - I just buried a dear friend, a spiderhole vet with Agnt Orange assoc in February down
at Ft. Hood - but I never expected this diagnosis for myself by a civilian neurologist.

What's funny is that when I went to the VA to get my hearing tested 2 yrs ago, they asked - quite independently of the
reason that I was there - if I had had exposure to Agnt Orange, and I said yeah, but it was incidental, and I did not
press the matter or followup as I had no problems at that time. We're all young & immortal, right?

MALE STUPID is prob a more accurate assessment...

Anyway, I would have no idea how to prove it in the first place... like so many others in my particular business over there,
folks who were in the extended overseas theaters sometimes went to 'Nam while PCS'd elsewhere overseas...so I too
volunteered and went to lovely SEA on a TDY basis, 90 days at a time was the count... on the last day of each tour your butt
was pulled outta there so that your body was not counted against the Congressional Head Count Ceiling. Smooth, eh?

That was one of LBJ's lovely ways back in 1964 to get around the Congressionally-mandated ceiling(s) on how many folks
were to be sent over to play in that lovely time in that lovely theater... so there we were at Danang and at Phu Cat (one of
our recovery points), sleeping in the heavy tents at the "sanitized areas" at the end of the runway or in our RC-130's/135's
themselves surrounding by all these darn C-123's that were always leaking this harmless juice onto the runways, and the
atmosphere was just reeking with this whatever stuff. One got to walk in it.
Those guys had their deep black secrets just as much as we did...

Anyway, we just TDY'd in there from, of all places, a place now in the news a good deal, and famous for other reasons -
F. Gary Powers flew outta there too on his last flight - but it was relatively close to 'Nam, right? Why would a Dash One
linguist take that duty? Easy... the excitement and discovery that the other side didn't speak the local lingo as we were guiding
our guys in and out of NV through what we thought were safe lanes... for that matter Dash Two linguists went over as well...
but fewer as we discovered that they had less of a need.

But we were young, and oh so patriotic at the time, weren't we? Boy, I have sat on this a long, long time - quietly.
But now I'm angry.

So now I have Parkinson's, of which there is no history in the last 4-5 generations of veterans in my family.
Who feels betrayed by their own country?
And now we are involved in who knows what?
Isn't this interesting?
Posted 9/28/2010 4:42 AM (GMT 0)
im very interested.....but parkinsons is not always passed trew jeens,,,,,,
Posted 9/29/2010 7:33 PM (GMT 0)
Anyway, I would have no idea how to prove it in the first place... like so many others in my particular business over there,
folks who were in the extended overseas theaters sometimes went to 'Nam while PCS'd elsewhere overseas...so I too
volunteered and went to lovely SEA on a TDY basis, 90 days at a time was the count... on the last day of each tour your butt
was pulled outta there so that your body was not counted against the Congressional Head Count Ceiling. Smooth, eh?

There are other ways to show that you were actually boots-on-the-ground in Viet Nam:

1.  Service Medical Records (SMRs).  Did you EVER go on sick call while you were in-country?  If so, there likely is a dated entry on one of the SF 600s with either the location of the clinic written in or a stamped clinic location in RVN.

2.  Your personnel (201) file.  Your personnel file contains your enlisted/officer efficiency/performance reports.  Many times, these reports will have some narrative about your activities over the previous reporting period, to include significant. 

Before you file any claim, I suggest that you get copies of these records and review them, line by line and entry by entry to see if you can prove you were in-country. 

You can get a copy of your personnel file through the National Personnel Records Center (NRPC).   When you make your request, make sure that you state that you want a copy of your military personnel file to include eficiency/personnel reports.  Here is a link about how to do this:  http://www.archives.gov/st-louis/military-personnel/

SMRs MAY be either at the NPRC or already at one of the VA Regional Office.  It might be best to ask NPRC for the records; if they have them, they'll provide a copy.  If NPRC says something like "the VA has them", you'll have to request a copy from your friendly neighborhood VA Regional Office. 

Here is a link that has a lot of information on how to file a claim for disability benefits with the DVA: http://jimstrickland912.com/

Be prepared to wait.  It takes a long tome to get this information.

Posted 10/18/2010 8:29 PM (GMT 0)
I was in country from Jan. 69 to Jan. 70 at Tuy Hoa. I was diagnosed with PD in Sept. 1995, and recently started the process for obtaining bennies. I contacted VA and they sent me the packet to submit. Get ready to jump through a hoop or two, but be persistant. I asked about registering back in 2002, and was told that I would be wasting my time, because it wasn't on the list. Now I am told I will get retro bennies back to when I began getting treatment at the VA hospital in 2002. Good luck to all my brothers and sisters.
Posted 11/10/2010 8:37 PM (GMT 0)
I am a Vietnam vet and have submitted claims to the VA for several conditions. All have been denied. I submitted for a hearing loss because I was assigned to the heavy artillery (8 inch/ 175 unit). Va says I had a hearing loss BEFORE I was drafted. Why in the world would the Army assign me to an artillery unit if I had a hearing loss prior to being drafted? The VA has no audiology records that indicated I had a hearing loss prior to being drafted. On top of all of that, I was issued hearing aids by the VA! No hearing loss? Say what! Next, I have several lipomas all over my body, which I am convinced are a result of exposure to Agent Orange. Numerous Vets have the same condition, but the VA will not acknowledge this is a result of Agent Orange. I have a heart condition and have had a heart attack and had to have stents put in for blocked arteries. Once again, the VA denied my claim because it was not the "right kind of heart disease"! Really. I appealed to the American Legion, but have not had much help.

What can we Vets do to get the VA to accept that lipomas are a result of Agent Orange?

What are some of your experience working with the Legion and what will they actually do for you? Thanks from an old vet.

Post Edited (jamesr) : 11/10/2010 2:46:15 PM (GMT-7)

Posted 2/15/2011 5:52 AM (GMT 0)
I was diagnosd in May 2005 with PD. as a 20 yr vet with one yr in rvn I filed in Nov 2009 when the VA posted a Presumptive ruling connecting PD and AgentOrange. in the interim the VA Regional in Phoenix sent me a notice in Jan 2010 stating they were working on my claim and sked'd me with the VA Comp and Pension clinic in Tucson. I kept the appt. In Aug 2010 I recd the exact same notice but was not sked'd with the C&P clinic. After much inquiry, in OJan 2011 I recd again the exact same ltr and was sked'd into the C&P clinic this date 2/14/11. What I came away from this eval was that the VA were trying to claim I have Parkinsonism and not PD.
checking up on it my neuologist commented in m file three times calling it Parkinsons and 2 times spoke of it as Parkinsonism in a general way. The point is if the VA can''t beat you by delaying a ruling that gives them the odds, then they will try it by fudging the diagnosis. most links i've found switch back and forth between PD and PDism.
anyone out there having the same prob with the VA? As excellent as the VA's medical side is, their disability side stinks. I'm currently taking 9 pills a day to control the shaking...zz
Posted 3/7/2011 2:40 PM (GMT 0)
eyes  Alan,

My name is Art, I too have PD and am fighting for help from the VA. I have found a study, by The Royal Australian Navy, that showed  'BLUE Water" sailors were also exposed to (AO) Agent Orange through the desalunation of drinking water. Also many cleaning agents, such as TCE, MEK, Toluene, etc are toxic risks for Young Onset PD.

Pass the word, it may provide another avenue of attack in the battle with the DVA

Posted 3/11/2011 6:42 PM (GMT 0)
I'm a 63-year-old Vet with Parkinson's.

I'd appreciate any information anyone has. Post it here.

Posted 3/17/2011 8:06 AM (GMT 0)
I've just received my second packet from the VA fast track requesting the same information. I wonder if it's part of their process to put requests in to a looping pattern before the final processing? Maybe I'll never get out of the loop. (joke!) They've lost almost every piece of information that I have submitted. Glad I'm in no hurry. Just persistant.
Posted 4/22/2011 11:23 PM (GMT 0)
My husband has had Parkinsons for 13 years. He was 48 when diagnosed. He was stationed at Eglin Air Force Base from 1968 till 1970. The base did research and development using Agent Orange and other chemicals. Rick worked in the plane that carried it and they sprayed surrounding field testing it. He also used a chemical to work on the radios that was banned also. We were told today that he will have a hard time because he did not step foot in Vietnam. I am heart broken to know that they may turn him down. I would be willing to bet that this is what caused the early onset Parkinsons I read an article that stated that more chemical was sprayed on the base because it was not as diluted also the trees caught some of it in Vietnam and at Eglin there were no trees. I would love to know the instances of Parkinsons and the ones who were stationed at Eglin airforce base. I am in this for the long haul. Rick has been in this fight for 13 years so we can fight this for 13.
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