Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Army Admits that it Doesn't Understand Short and Long Term Consequences of Concussion and TBI

Full Article at: 'We Just Don't Know'
The Army vice chief of staff explains why inconclusive science is complicating the treatment of wounded warriors.

Pete Marovich / ZUMAPress.com


"If there's a member of the brass who's taken mental-health issues in the military head on, it's four-star Gen. Peter Chiarelli. On his second deployment to Iraq, he served as commander of all coalition ground forces. Since then, he's gone before Congress to explain the Army's work on the invisible wounds of war and created a suicide-prevention task force. When word got out that NEWSWEEK was investigating the science of battlefield concussions, his office lined up an interview with articles editor Andrew Bast. Excerpts:

How well do we understand the short- and long-term effects of mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI), or battlefield concussions?
I don't think we do. The vast body of medical understanding of these wounds will show you that we just don't understand.
It's science that's just not that well developed. I use the example of open-heart surgery. You can go to two doctors for the same problem, and one may use different antirejection drugs and different postoperative requirements, but it is all a very well-developed science. The science of the brain, however, is not. That's what causes the huge issues we've got here.

What are the issues, exactly?
The comorbidity issue between posttraumatic stress [PTS] and TBI are huge. One of the biggest problems we have is that every soldier who is in a blast, and has some kind of a behavioral-health issue after the fact, thinks they have TBI. Some of them do, but some don't. They may have PTS or some other behavioral-health issue. And the drug regimen for the two is very different. So if a doctor makes a mistake and diagnoses someone with PTS who has TBI, the drug regimen would be different.

Can you explain that term, comorbidity?
Comorbidity is the sharing of symptoms. The symptoms are much the same for PTS and TBI. So when you have similar symptoms, it's very difficult to make a diagnosis. We're not being criticized for the way we're working with soldiers who've lost arms or legs. If you were at the Army 10-miler the other day, there were hundreds of wounded warriors on prostheses. These are mechanical injuries, and we're very good at treating those. But [on brain injuries] what has been hard is that people really feel we are letting them down. The problem is that we just don't know. You'll find a lot of people who will come to you with the answers, but I think if you were to talk to the specialists, they will tell you that very little that's come to their attention that they have researched has proven to be effective."

Migraines Associated with 36% of Returning Veterans, PTSD, TBI

In one study of 3,621 U.S. soldiers screened within 90 days of returning from a one-year combat tour in Iraq, 19 percent were found to have migraine, with migraine suspected in an additional 17 percent of soldiers

Full Article at: Soldiers Returning from Active Duty with Significant Rates of Migraine and Related Health Conditions


National Headache Foundation Launches 'War Veterans Health Resource Initiative' to Help Ease Transition Back to Civilian Life

CHICAGO, Nov. 9, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Studies have shown that soldiers returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan have been found to have nearly double the rates of migraine compared to the general population, as well as higher incidences of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), depression and anxiety. Now, veterans returning from active duty with these conditions have access to a new program that will ease their transition back home. The National Headache Foundation (NHF) has launched the War Veterans Health Resource Initiative, which provides veterans with a single, comprehensive source for information on all aspects of post-deployment life, including headache and migraine.

Research has shown that migraine headaches often occur with conditions that specifically affect war veterans – PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), and depression. In one study of 3,621 U.S. soldiers screened within 90 days of returning from a one-year combat tour in Iraq, 19 percent were found to have migraine, with migraine suspected in an additional 17 percent of soldiers (1). In comparison, the expected prevalence of migraine in the general population is approximately 12 percent (2). The study also found alarming rates of depression (32 percent), PTSD (22 percent), and anxiety (13 percent). In addition, approximately 70 percent of people who have suffered from a mild TBI complain of post-traumatic headache (3). Another study has also shown PTSD to potentially be a risk factor for chronic migraine headache (4).

"People need to understand that migraine is not just a bad headache; it is neuro-biological disease that often comes with severe nausea, blinding light sensitivity, extreme noise sensitivity, vertigo, and visual aura that makes handling weapons and heavy equipment nearly impossible. It is a disease that can take a physically fit and mentally tough young soldier and remove them from active duty," said Dr. Marc Husid, director of the Walton Headache Center of Walton Rehabilitation Health System in Augusta, Georgia."

Veteran Blinded by VA Awarded $250, 000.00

Also see our July 2009 article on this: Wednesday, July 22, 2009, VA Glaucoma Mistreatment Causes Blindness in 7 Veterans

Full Article at: Military vet gets $250K for VA hospital negligence
The Associated Press
Posted: 11/09/2010 04:58:51 AM PST
Updated: 11/09/2010 04:58:52 AM PST

PALO ALTO, Calif.—A military veteran who claims he's legally blind because of negligent treatment at a Northern California Veterans Administration hospital is getting $250,000 to settle the case.

David E. Woodward Sr. is one of eight eye patients treated at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System who were told last year that their vision loss may have been caused by improper care.

The hospital's chief of staff wrote the 87-year-old Woodward that his vision loss due to glaucoma may have been preventable, saying treatment should have been overseen and reviewed by an eye care specialist.

The San Jose Mercury News says Woodward was diagnosed "glaucoma suspect" and nothing was done for more than four years."

Woodward lawyer Kim Staskus says the government did not admit responsibility, but says the payout speaks for itself.