A United States government research team probing a group of federal employees claiming symptoms of the “Havana syndrome” ailment that first emerged in 2016 did not find any conclusive evidence of brain injury, according to a study published in a medical journal on Monday (Mar 18).
Researchers from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) also discovered no changes in most clinical measures between a set of 86 employees and their adult family members reporting unexpected health events and a matched group of healthy volunteers who had similar work assignments.
Symptoms of the enigmatic ailment were for the very first time reported by United States embassy officials in Havana, Cuba, later affecting diplomats, spies, and other personnel across the globe.
These included hearing noise and experiencing head pressure followed by headaches, migraines, dizziness, and memory lapses.
“These individuals have symptoms that are real, distressing and very difficult to treat,” Dr Leighton Chan, NIH Clinical Center acting chief scientific officer and lead study author, said according to news agency Reuters.
The participants of the study included military personnel stationed in China, Vienna, Cuba, and the United States. They undertook a battery of tests including clinical, auditory, balance, visual, neuropsychological and blood testing.
They also additionally received various types of MRI scans aimed at examining the volume, structure and function of the brain.
Researchers at the NIH did discover that over 25% of patients who reported symptoms went on to acquire persistent postural-perceptual dizziness, a chronic illness. They also reported noticeably higher levels of fatigue, post-traumatic stress and depression as compared to the control group.
The results of the MRI brain imaging study “should be some reassurance for patients,” said Louis French, the study’s investigator and deputy director of the National Intrepid Center of Excellence at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, as he said that the researchers did not find a correlation between odd symptoms and neurodegenerative changes.
“The post-traumatic stress and mood symptoms reported are not surprising given the ongoing concerns of many of the participants,” he said.
The US State Department on Monday (Mar 18) said that it was reviewing the NIH report and that Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s primary concern with regard to what the department calls anomalous health incidents (AHI) was the health, safety and security of personnel and family members.
“The Secretary remains resolute in ensuring that the Department does everything possible to ensure employees and family members who report an AHI are treated with respect and compassion and receive timely access to medical care and all benefits to which they are entitled,” a spokesperson said by email.
(With inputs from agencies)
