May 07, 2018
Reform weapons training to protect US troops from brain injury
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the signature wound of today’s wars, with nearly 380,000 servicemembers diagnosed since 2000. TBI can come from falls, bullets shrapnel, or the blast pressure wave that comes from explosions, such as from enemy improvised explosive devices (IEDs). New research has also shown that servicemembers may experience cognitive deficits after firing heavy weapons, such as shoulder-fired recoilless rifles, even in training.
Recent Department of Defense (DoD) studies have demonstrated that some servicemembers experience cognitive deficits in memory and executive function after firing heavy weapons in training, even within allowable firing limits. After 96 hours, cognitive functioning returned to baseline, but the long-term effect of repeat exposure is unknown. There is cause for concern.
Another DoD study found higher rates of concussion-associated symptoms among individuals with a history of prolonged exposure to low-level blasts from breaching and shoulder-fired weapons.
In other areas, such as sports, scientists are learning more about the harmful effects of repeated, low-level impacts on the brain. DoD animal studies have confirmed this relationship for blast waves, showing cumulative effects from repeated blast exposures over consecutive days. The authors of one DoD study concluded that repeated, low-level blast exposures was “a potential occupational medicine concern.”
Read the Full Article at The Hill
More from CNAS
-
Commentary
Technology & National Security
CNAS Insights | The Export Control Loophole Fueling China's Chip ProductionThis week, Reuters reported that China has apparently built a prototype of an extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUV) system, a highly intricate machine used to produce cutting-...
By Michelle Nie, Autumn Dorsey & Janet Egan
-
Video
Technology & National Security
Paul Scharre on How AI Could Transform the Nature of WarPaul Scharre, CNAS Executive Vice President, joins host Luisa Rodriguez to explain why we are hurtling toward a “battlefield singularity” — a tipping point where AI increasing...
By Paul Scharre
-
Commentary
Energy, Economics & Security / Technology & National Security
Recommendations for Promoting American AI AbroadStrategic Context and Program Objectives The American AI Exports Program is an ambitious and essential proposal to expand the reach of American AI technologies in foreign mar...
By Janet Egan, Geoffrey Gertz, Daniel Remler & Ruby Scanlon
-
Podcast
Technology & National Security
Defense One Radio, Ep. 200: Paul Scharre Explains the Global AI Arms RacePaul Scharre, executive vice president at the Center for a New American Security, joined Defense One to discuss science and technology. The former Army Ranger explored how AI ...
By Paul Scharre
