Abstract
BackgroundThe prevalence of medical symptoms in aviators has not been described in the medical literature.MethodsAn anonymous questionnaire was handed to all Israeli Air Force aviators who went through the routine yearly examination. Because only two women filled the questionnaire, we excluded them. The questionnaire contained a list of 49 symptoms and the aviators were asked to mark symptoms that were present in the last month before the examination as well as age, estimated weekly flying hours, military service status (reserve or career) and type of aircraft (jet-fighter, helicopter or transport). A general linear model was used to determine the association between age, weekly flying hours, type of aircraft and type of service with the number of symptoms. Binary logistic regression analyses was used to assess the association of these factors with lack of symptoms, and the top five ranking symptoms.ResultsData was available for 323 male aviators. 62.5% of the aviators reported at least one symptom in the previous month. 26.9% reported three or more symptoms. 25.1% reported spinal symptoms, 22% respiratory symptoms, 21.4% fatigue, 11.5% headache and 6.5% general weakness. Career service was associated with the number of symptoms, fatigue and general weakness. Age was associated with fatigue and general weakness. Aircraft type and weekly flying hours were not associated with any symptom.ConclusionsMedical symptoms are prevalent in military aviators. Career personnel report on medical symptoms, especially fatigue, more often than reserve personnel. Further study is warranted to examine this association.
Highlights
The prevalence of medical symptoms in aviators has not been described in the medical literature
We found that medical symptoms were experienced by almost two-thirds (62.5%) of the aviators in the previous months, with spinal symptoms and respiratory symptoms leading the list
We found that younger age and career military service are associated with a higher prevalence of fatigue and general weakness
Summary
The prevalence of medical symptoms in aviators has not been described in the medical literature. Aviators are exposed to high levels of stress, both physically and mentally, during training and combat. This might put military aircrew in increased risk of developing bodily and psychological symptoms. It is important to differentiate between symptoms presented to the Symptoms are associated with poorer perceived health [7], with increased functional impairment and health care use [8, 9], especially with increasing number of symptoms [10] They could influence the services a health care system should offer its population, and the practice and education of the primary care physicians in it
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