Ketan Desai
The role of environment has been widely speculated to play a role in the pathogenesis of auto-immune diseases such as Lupus, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Psoriasis, etc. However, no definitive linkage has been found so far. In order to explore this possible association, a retrospective study was undertaken in veterans who had fought in various wars ranging from WWII to Gulf War and the prevalence of auto-immune diseases ascertained. This was compared to the prevalence in civilian populations. Except for auto-immune thyroiditis, no difference was found in veterans who had been exposed to different environments and between them and civilians in the US. A larger study will be needed to explore this lack of association.