Deployment-Related Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (mTBI): Incidence, Natural History, and Predictors of Recovery in Soldiers Returning from OIF/OEF.

摘要

The overarching aim of this study is to describe the epidemiology, natural history, and prognostic predictors of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) in a well-defined cohort of 1,500 recently-deployed soldiers at Fort Carson and Fort Bragg. Mild traumatic brain injury is a frequent injury in theatre and there are substantial gaps in our understanding of the recovery patterns after this injury and whether currently used mTBI screening tools are valid. This study is augmenting ongoing surveillance and clinical efforts at these locations by expanding the post-deployment assessment of traumatic brain injury (TBI) and TBI-related exposures; identifying pre-existing and deployment- related exposures and comorbid conditions that may influence the risk or prognosis of mTBI-related sequelae; determining the relationship of mTBI on screens with clinical interviews, and re-assessing this cohort at three, six, and twelve months after return from deployment with the aim of determining the persistence of post- deployment symptoms and the degree to which these impact on military or civilian employment, including fitness for military duty, functional status, and quality of life.