A client’s parent is a veteran of the Vietnam War, and the client has been left with the aftermath of the genetic damage caused by one of the deadliest toxins known: TCDD dioxin. She has spina bifida, a well-recognized consequence of parental Agent Orange (AO) exposure, and a slew of other physical and emotional challenges.
What is Agent Orange, and how did this happen?
And is there any way our work can help?
Listen to Agent Orange: "I Have a Client Who . . ." Pathology Conversations with Ruth Werner now, then check out The ABMP Podcast at abmp.com/podcasts or subscribe to the podcast in the Apple Podcast Store, Google Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you access your favorite podcasts.
Resources:
Pocket Pathology: /abmp-pocket-pathology-app
Current list of “presumptive conditions” recognized by the VA as the consequences of direct Agent Orange exposure:
Administration, U.D. of V.A., Veterans Health (no date a) VA.gov | Veterans Affairs. Available at: https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange/birth-defects/index.asp (Accessed: 29 November 2022).
Administration, U.D. of V.A., Veterans Health (no date c) VA.gov | Veterans Affairs. Available at: https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/publications/agent-orange/agent-orange-2021/presumptions.asp (Accessed: 29 November 2022).
‘Agent Orange’ (2022) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Agent_Orange&oldid=1115064660 (Accessed: 29 November 2022).
Birth defects linked to Agent Orange (2022) Veterans Affairs. Available at: https://www.va.gov/disability/eligibility/special-claims/birth-defects/ (Accessed: 29 November 2022).
Dioxins and their effects on human health (no date). Available at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/dioxins-and-their-effects-on-human-health (Accessed: 29 November 2022).
Editors, H. com (no date) Agent Orange, HISTORY. Available at: https://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/agent-orange-1 (Accessed: 29 November 2022).
Fresques, C.O., Hannah (no date) The Children of Agent Orange, ProPublica. Available at: https://www.propublica.org/article/the-children-of-agent-orange (Accessed: 29 November 2022).
Ornstein, C. (no date) Agent Orange Act Was Supposed to Help Vietnam Veterans — But Many Still Don’t Qualify, ProPublica. Available at: https://www.propublica.org/article/agent-orange-act-was-supposed-to-help-vietnam-veterans-but-many-still-dont- (Accessed: 29 November 2022).
Schmidt, C. (no date) Is Agent Orange Still Causing Birth Defects?, Scientific American. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1038/scientificamerican0616-70.
Veterans Exposed to Agent Orange: Legislative History, Litigation, and Current Issues (no date). Available at: https://www.everycrsreport.com/reports/R43790.html (Accessed: 29 November 2022).
What is Agent Orange? (no date) The Aspen Institute. Available at: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/programs/agent-orange-in-vietnam-program/what-is-agent-orange/ (Accessed: 29 November 2022).
Woods, N. (2020) Are Children or Grandchildren Eligible for Agent Orange Disability Benefits?, Woods and Woods, LLC, Veterans Disability Lawyer. Available at: https://www.woodslawyers.com/agent-orange-birth-defects-grandkids/ (Accessed: 29 November 2022).