Expert: MARK A. HOWELL - 8/1/2009

Question
QUESTION: Mr. Howell, good evening.

I am currently applying for a commission as an Officer in
the US Navy, but have few concerns from things an Enlistment
recruiter told me. Would you mind clarifying for me, please?

From ages 6-9 I had asthma, nothing afterwards. All Dr.
visits since then have shown me a clean bill of health. Have
been working out 4-6 times x week since I was 16, in both
cardio and weight lifting, without problems. However, an
enlistment recruiter I had previously spoken with stated
that ANY traces of asthma would result in immediate
disqualification, thus, that I should not mention this fact
on any paperwork or MEPS.

I've had 3 surgeries in my lifetime thus far:
- Varicocele, at age 20
- Pilonidal Cyst (benign), removed at age 22
- Fatty Cysts (4 - all benign) on back, removed at age 28.

Same recruiter told me that I should not disclose my
surgeries, as this would either disqualify me or severely
delay my deployment.

Bottom line, I don't like lying. I can have Dr's notes for
all, showing no issues.

Questions:

Is asthma at ANY AGE an immediate disqualifier? Or only if
one has it from ages 12 and up?

Would my particular surgeries disqualify me?

Is there a certain number of surgeries one can have before
being disqualified?

Was the enlistment recruiter speaking truthfully, or just
trying to make it easier on himself to fill his quota?

ANSWER: Detre,
Sorry I haven't been able to answer you sooner, my computer has been down for repairs.
Please send me a follow-up marked "Private" and not "Public" like this one.  Your medical problems are nobody else's business.
Thanks,
Colonel H


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Following up sir, please advise.

Answer
Detre,
Your follow-up was still sent "Public" so I'll tell you what I can without getting specific.

What your recruiter was talking about is that what most people in your situation do is simply deny ever being diagnosed with asthma.  Asthma is easily misdiagnosed and often confused with a mild allergy.  Also, young people often "outgrow" asthma, which apparently you did.  Below is a quote from a medical journal:

"Asthma is usually diagnosed in childhood.  In many patients, however, the symptoms will disappear or be significantly reduced after puberty.  Around age 20, symptoms may begin to reappear.  Researchers have tracked this tendency for reappearing asthma and found that people with childhood asthma tend to experience reappearing symptoms through their 30s and 40s at various levels of severity.  Regardless of whether your asthma is active, continue to avoid your known triggers and keep your rescue medication handy in case you need them.  Approximately 50% of children with asthma appear to outgrow asthma when they reach adolescence.  Once someone develops sensitive airways, they remain that way for life, although asthma symptoms can vary through the years.  As a child's airways mature, they are able to handle airway inflammation and irritants better, so their asthma symptoms may notably decrease. About half of those children find their asthma symptoms reappear in varying degrees when they reach their late thirties or early forties.  There is no way to predict which children may experience greatly reduced symptoms as they get older."

Trying to prove to the military that you no longer have asthma is difficult.  That's why most people just avoid it.  As you can see from the medical journal quote, asthma may reappear later in life, so the military may say you still have it, you're just in a dormant stage right now.  Hopefully you've outgrown it and will never have any problems again.

The problem you run into with following that recruiters advice, is that should it ever reappear later the doctor can claim it was a pre-existing condition.  Therefore you must've lied about it and the military will kick you out for false enlistment.

The NUMBER of surgeries you had is unimportant, what matters is what TYPE of surgeries.  The surgeries for cysts are inconsequential, but a varicocele matters. The military medical regulations say having a varicocele is a disqualifier, but having it corrected by surgery is OK.

So you have no need to lie about anything.  Because you once had asthma, you'll be asked to provide a letter from your doctor saying you no longer have it.  So you should get the letter now and be prepared, so you'll not have any extra delays.

Thanks for wanting to serve your country in uniform.
Colonel H