Abstract

Sulfur mustard (SM) has widely been used against the military and civilians during the Iraq-Iran war (1980-1988). It mostly affects the respiratory system. A large historical cohort study was designed to evaluate the pulmonary status of non-military victims in Sardasht, Iran, in comparison with a matched control group 20 years after a single massive exposure. The exposed group was divided into two subgroups of hospitalized and non-hospitalized based on the severity of the injuries indicated by hospitalization a few days following exposure. All participants' respiratory symptoms and signs were evaluated by internists. Dyspnea (n = 261; P = 93.2) was the most common symptom. Chronic cough, cough severity, sputum, hemoptysis, dyspnea, pattern of dyspnea, severity of dyspnea (P < 0.001 for all), and chest pain (P = 0.003) were statistically significantly different between the two groups. Wheezing was the most common pulmonary finding (11.4). There was also a statistically significant difference in the auscultation of wheezing (P = 0.045) and rhonchi (P = 0.018) between the hospitalized and control groups. Considering objective findings, pulmonary involvement was observed in 24.3 (n = 68, P = 0.007).