The Air Force recently celebrated a significant expansion of its trauma readiness center in Cincinnati. That is where military medical personnel can hone skills they’ll need to treat combat casualties.
Military Use of Negative Pressure Wound Therapy Increasingly Essential Since Iraq, Afghanistan Wars
Since 2004, beginning in the battlefield medicine setting, negative-pressure therapy has been regularly used in the treatment of acute injuries and nonhealing wounds.
Nonhealing Wounds From Battlefield Injuries, Chronic Conditions, Surgery Create Medical Challenges
During the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, more than half of all injuries involved the extremities.
Tabletop Pressure Wave Generator Could Help Study Explosive Blasts That Lead to Military Brain Injury
Researchers at the University of Rhode Island have developed what they describe as a cost-effective, customizable, easy-to-use tabletop pressure wave generator that can mimic the kind of explosive blasts that cause brain injury in military servicemembers.
Military Surgeons Raise Alarm About Combat-Casualty Readiness
The current state of combat-casualty readiness in the military health system has degraded to the point where the country is unprepared to care for the casualties that would result from a major conflict, experts told Congress last month.
VA Accused of Not Keeping Up with a More Active Amputee Patient Population
While VA has long considered itself a provider of world-class prosthetics care, younger veterans are reporting that the department has yet to adapt to a more active patient population.
Use of Non-therapeutic Laparotomy Decreased in Recent Wars but Remain Essential Battlefield Trauma-Care Tool
As combat casualty care improved over time during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the use of nontherapeutic laparotomy (NTL) decreased.
Advocates Warn VA’s Spinal Cord Injury Hub System Is In Danger of Collapse
The Spinal Cord Injury and Disorders (SCID) system, the hub-and-spoke model of care that VA uses to treat some of its most vulnerable veterans, is in danger of collapse, veterans’ advocates are telling lawmakers. According to them, the system is under-financed and understaffed, with patients being turned away because of the lack of resources.
Congressional Testimony Puts Focus on TBIs Caused by Weapons Training
While traumatic brain injury (TBI) and its impact on the lives of servicemembers and veterans have received considerable attention, most of that attention has focused on TBIs incurred during combat.
Traumatic Brain Injury Associated With Increased Risk of Brain Cancer
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) has been linked to poor long-term outcomes in the veteran population, including cardiovascular disease, dementia, epilepsy and mental health issues. A new study of post-9/11 veterans provides evidence of yet another concerning effect of TBI—an increased, although still low, risk of brain cancer.
Almost 1 in 11 U.S. Military Casualties Received Warm Fresh Whole Blood
To help save lives, especially in battlefield situations, the U.S. military has frequently used a so-called walking blood bank to obtain warm, fresh whole blood (WFWB).
Combat-Related Extremity Amputation Negatively Affects Metabolic Regulation
Although amputations are medically necessary and could decrease pain, improve mobility and expedite return to activity, limb loss could negatively impact metabolic regulation and contribute to a higher risk of obesity, according to a recent military study.
Many Female VA Patients Appear to Have Undiagnosed OSA
Too many women veterans remained undiagnosed with sleep apnea, even if they were at high risk of adverse outcomes, according to a new study.
Court Settlement Will Ease Way for ‘Bad Paper’ Veterans to Get Benefits
Tens of thousands of less-than-honorably discharged veterans will have an easier avenue to have those discharges reconsidered and possibly adjusted, making it more straightforward for them to access VA services.
Mortality, Amputation from Critical Limb Ischemia Declining at VA
IOWA CITY, IOWA — High rates of diabetes, obesity, smoking, and other risk factors elevate veterans’ risk of peripheral artery disease (PAD) and critical limb ischemia.
Early Pain Experience with TKA Affects Longer Term Results
BIRMINGHAM – What is the pain experience after total knee arthroplasty and how does it affect outcome six to 12 months later? That is the question raised in an article in JAMA Network Open. The Birmingham, AL, VAMC and University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers...
Early Use of Regional Anesthesia Provides Sustained Pain Benefits
When integrated into combat casualty care, early use of regional anesthesia appears to provide sustained pain benefits throughout rehabilitation and recovery.
