Military medicine
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Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) is prevalent in service members (SMs); however, there is a lack of consensus on the appropriate approach to return to duty (RTD). Head-mounted augmented reality technology, such as the HoloLens 2, can create immersive, salient environments to more effectively evaluate relevant military task performance. The Troop Readiness Evaluation with Augmented Reality Return-to-Duty (READY) platform was developed to objectively quantify cognitive and motor performance during military-specific activities to create a comprehensive approach to aid in mTBI detection and facilitate appropriate RTD. The aim of this project was to detail the technical development of the Troop READY platform, the outcomes, and its potential role in the aiding detection and RTD decision-making post mTBI. The secondary aim included evaluating the safety, feasibility, and SM usability of the Troop READY platform. ⋯ The Troop READY platform delivers self-directed, salient assessment modules to quantify single-task, dual-task, and unit-based performance in SMs. The resultant data provide insight into SM performance through objective outcomes and identify specific areas of executive or motor function that may be slow to recover following mTBI.
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There is myriad of volatile compounds to which military personnel are exposed that can potentially have negative effects on their health. Military service occurs in a broad array of environments so it is difficult to predict the hazardous compounds to which the personnel might be exposed. XploSafe is developing passive diffusive samplers to facilitate the sampling and quantification of a wide range of chemical vapor exposures that personnel may be exposed to in the workplace. ⋯ OSU-6 based sampler badges were able to detect the presence and quantify the average exposures of five airborne compounds in a paint booth of a military contractor located in Bristow, Oklahoma. Experiments show that these samplers can adsorb and quantify a broad array of different volatile organic compounds whose high sampling rates coupled with high capacity provide both sensitivity and the ability to quantify over a large range of exposures. This technology can meet the requirements for personal samplers to create Individual Longitudinal Exposure Record for each military person.
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Although women have always served in the U.S. Armed Forces, it has only been in the last half century that systematic examinations have been done on the health issues experienced by military women. Still, little is known about how occupational health risks among Navy divers might vary between men and women. Our objective was to use available data to examine health issues among all separating divers and then determine how prevalence rates varied between men and women for diagnoses made within the diver's last year of active duty service. ⋯ The findings of much higher relative risks for women for conditions such as genitourinary disease, skin conditions, and acute respiratory infections require follow-up research to look for causes and potential risk reduction interventions. Future research must determine specific and relative risks as a necessary precursor to developing, implementing, and testing potentially sex-specific risk reduction and health improvement interventions.
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Prophylactic local antibiotic therapy (LAbT) to prevent infection in open long bone fracture (OLBF) patients has been in use for many decades despite lack of definitive evidence confirming a beneficial effect. We aimed to evaluate the effect of LAbT on outcomes of OLBF patients on a nationwide scale. ⋯ Our findings indicate that prophylactic LAbT for OLBF may not be beneficial over well-established standards of care such as early surgical debridement and systemic antibiotics. Prospective studies evaluating the efficacy, risks, costs, and indications of adjuvant LAbT for OLBF are warranted.
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The USA is experiencing an opioid epidemic. Active duty service members (ADSMs) are at risk for opioid use disorder (OUD). The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has disrupted health care and introduced additional stressors. ⋯ Rates of OUD and MOUD decreased, whereas rates of opioid rescue medication increased during the study period. Opioid OD rates did not significantly change in this study. Changes in the DoD policy may be affecting rates with greater effect than COVID-19 pandemic effects.