BRAIN WOUND UPDATE #17: Military Suicides: Rates gradually increased from 2011 to 2022

Nothing the DOD Mental Health System of VA does for brain injuries is approved for Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI). And TBI has been shown to be a direct contributor to suicidal ideation, amenable to healing with HBOT. A more thorough Suicide Prevention Strategy should report on efforts to properly diagnose and heal brain wounds, across the board.

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BRAIN WOUND UPDATE #16: More Evidence: Untreated TBI ties to Cardiovascular, Endocrine, Neurological, and Psychiatric Disorders

At some point, DoD, the VA, and medicine in general will hear the drumbeat of data in peer-reviewed science attesting to the damage done by untreated brain wounds. Fortunately for those lucky few, the role of Hyperbaric Oxygenation to help treat and heal their brain wounds has given them new lives.

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BRAIN WOUND UPDATE #15: Suicide hotline botched veteran’s cry for help. An investigation found critical breakdowns

Workers at the national Veterans Crisis Line mismanaged communication with a veteran who died by suicide within an hour of texting the hotline and failed for 10 years to establish protocols to save veterans’ text messages for future follow-up, according to a report by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of the Inspector General.  

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BRAIN WOUND UPDATE #14: Research Reveals Potential Links from Brain Wounds to Parkinson’s and CTE

In a study of nearly 360,000 military veteran records released earlier this year in the Movement Disorders journal, researchers provide evidence that traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), both trauma-related disorders, are risk factors for Parkinson’s disease (PD).

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BRAIN WOUND UPDATE #13: Holistic Total Force Fitness to Maximize Performance

A senior retired US Navy SEAL officer has weighed in with a six part justification for ACTION to fight suicide. His remarks relate to short- and long-term needs for dealing with force readiness amidst known challenges in the SpecOps community. His remarks are in concert with the Interview with the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (SEAC), Ramón Colón-López that follows his remarks.

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Neuropathologic and Clinical Findings in Young Contact Sport Athletes Exposed to Repetitive Head Impacts

Young contact sport athletes may be at risk for long-term neuropathologic disorders, including chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Across the world, millions of people are exposed to repetitive head impacts (RHIs) through participation in contact and collision sports, military service, physical violence, and many other activities.1-6 Repetitive head impacts can result in symptomatic concussions and the much more frequent, nonconcussive injuries that are asymptomatic. Read more

BRAIN WOUND UPDATE #12: Links Between TBI/PTSD and Parkinson’s Disease in Military Veterans

New data validates an association between trauma-related disorders and the development of Parkinson’s disease in military veterans. In a study of nearly 360,000 military veteran records released earlier this year in the Movement Disorders journal, researchers provide evidence that traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), both trauma-related disorders, are risk factors for Parkinson’s disease (PD). Read more

BRAIN WOUND UPDATE #11: Suicide Risk, Mental Health and Military TBIs

Individuals with a history of military-identified TBI had significantly higher rates of new-onset mental health conditions than those without TBI. Increased risk for suicide was associated indirectly (through new-onset mental health diagnoses) and directly with history of TBI. Meaning. These findings suggest that conceptualizing exposures (physical, psychological) as events that accumulate over an individual’s lifetime and increase risk for negative outcomes (eg, suicide) may assist in identifying mechanisms underlying frequently co-occurring conditions, as well as evidence-based interventions. Read more

BRAIN WOUND UPDATE #10: AVIV Clinic Press Release: Review of Scientific Basis of HBOT for TBI

Aviv Clinics, one of the most advanced brain clinics in the world, shares the results of a new comprehensive literature review that shows hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) should be recommended as an effective therapy for patients suffering with chronic mild traumatic brain injury (TBI). Read more

BRAIN WOUND UPDATE #9 – But is a Concussion a “Wound”?

Advanced imaging is outpacing medicine’s ability to keep up with implications of the “new” brain science, and the nature of brain wounding. Medical textbooks are out-of-date with respect both to the nature of brain wounds and treatments to heal those wounds. Read more