But Platter doesn't fault the military. I believe the guy might have done it. I'll defend those officers' judgment on trying to do something. The military wasn't using a new drug. PB has been used for more than three decades to treat a muscle-paralyzing disease called myasthenia gravis and to counteract certain muscle relaxants used in anesthesia.
Platter also cautions against nailing one cause for Gulf War illnesses.
The VA's Portland Environmental Hazards Research Center reported a much less significant connection between the drug and Gulf War syndrome about the same time the Pentagon study was released. The research also found similar proportions of soldiers contracting Gulf Warsyndrome whether they were stationed in the Gulf before, during or after the war, Spencer said. PB appears to only have been used during the actual war. Even so, people who took PB and experienced high combat stress appear to have higher risk of developing Gulf War syndrome. A much larger group of soldiers needs to be examined in order to determine how solid those findings are, Spencer said.