Military medicine
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Military personnel during training and military operations are exposed to a large number of repeated exposures to low-level blast overpressure from a variety of sources. These exposures rarely produce a concussion, but anecdotal evidence from soldiers indicates that it can still cause transient neurological effects. Impulsive acoustic sources, such as the ones encountered during military training, are characterized by a broadband energy distribution with resulting pressure measurements that exhibit frequency components well within the infrasound range. This infrasound can couple directly with the human body and in this way alter or influence physiological processes up to inducing concussion-like symptoms. ⋯ The results presented in this article suggest that reported symptoms from military personnel exposed to repeated low-level blast may also be because of acoustic loading. Therefore, to take into account these findings, future studies aimed at characterizing the effects of repeated low-level blast exposure should consider including acoustic measurements in their investigations.
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The objective of this study was to assess the current experience of Israel Defense Forces' (IDF) advanced life support (ALS) providers in performing life-saving interventions (LSIs), the rate of doctors and paramedics achieving the Trauma and Combat Medicine Branch benchmarks, and the rate of providers feeling confident in performing the interventions although not achieving the benchmarks. ⋯ IDF ALS providers have alarmingly limited experience in performing LSIs. Many of them are confident in their ability despite not achieving evidence-based benchmarks. Additional training is required, maybe as a part of an annual medical fitness test.
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This effort, motivated and guided by prior simulated injury results of the unprotected head, is to assess and compare helmet pad configurations on the head for the effective mitigation of blast pressure transmission in the brain in multiple blast exposure environments. ⋯ Optimizing helmet pad size and/or placement could provide an improved protection by minimizing the side blast orientation effects and mitigating high-pressure fields in the brain from repeated blast exposures.
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Women's sex-specific health care and hygiene needs are part of military readiness for female service members and important for their leaders to ensure unit readiness. Promoting readiness that includes women's health needs contributes to the overall strength of the military. Because women comprise over 15% of today's military force and growing in proportion, readiness for military women has obtained increased attention in research and health practice. Menstruation is a sex-specific experience that must be part of the consideration for individual military readiness. Little research has explored the in-garrison readiness of women, particularly for women in high operations tempo settings, when considering menstruation management. The specific aim of this study was to explore how active duty U.S. Air Force women manage their menstruation while living day-to-day in a military culture. ⋯ This study was the first to use a qualitatively driven mixed-method design to explore military women's menstrual practices in an operational setting. This study can be used in collaboration with other evidence to promote health of military women through clinical education and support in command environments. Future research should consider other operational settings where women are expected to maintain a high level of readiness.
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Repeated blast exposures result in structural damage to the peripheral auditory system (PAS) and the central auditory system (CAS). However, it is difficult to differentiate injuries between two distinct pathways: the mechanical damage in the PAS caused by blast pressure waves transmitted through the ear and the damage in the CAS caused by blast wave impacts on the head or traumatic brain injury. This article reports a preliminary study using a 3D printed chinchilla "helmet" as a head protection device associated with the hearing protection devices (e.g., earplugs) to isolate the CAS damage from the PAS injuries under repeated blast exposures. ⋯ The biomechanical modeling and animal experiments demonstrated that this four-case study in chinchillas with helmet and hearing protection devices provides a novel methodology to investigate the blast-induced damage in the PAS and CAS.