MHS Vital Signs MILITARY HE ALTH SYS TEM E-BULLE TIN
S u b s c r ib e
ISSUE 13 APRIL 2010
IN THIS ISSUE
MHS Vital Signs is distributed
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April 2010 Online Edition:
• April Is Month of the Military Child
• Ceremony Honors Fallen Medical
Service Members
• MHS Announces New Medal of
Honor Site
• Do You Know Your Drinking IQ?
• Warrior Care Spotlight: “Dizzy” Clinic
Aids Soldiers With TBI Care
• Raising Expectations in Military
Medical Education
• MHS Profiles: Saluting America’s
Smallest Heroes
• Research Roundup: New Studies
Reveal Genetic Changes That Lead
to Cancer
UPCOMING EVENTS
Mental Health America’s
2010 Annual Conference
June 9-12, Washington, D.C.
37th Annual International
Global Health Conference
June 14-18, Washington, D.C.
Military Child Education
Coalition’s Annual Conference
July 21-23, National Harbor, Md
to MHS
V it a l S ig n s
at
h t t p ://h e a lt
h .m il /
vi t a ls ig n s
Welcome
As of March 2010 there were more than 36,000 service
members injured during OIF/OEF. When you consider
that more than half of the active duty force is married,
many with children, you realize there are significant
numbers of families and children who are impacted by
parental injuries of war.
We know, through research, that military children and
families are generally strong and resilient. But we
also know that military families and communities face
challenges their civilian counterparts do not. Parental
wartime injuries are an example. Expert consensus and
professional involvement with military families and children of the wounded has
shown that beginning with the notification of injury, a cascade of events takes
place that can raise family stress, lead to additional family separation, and raise
child anxiety and worry about parental health and their own safety.
“Courage to Care, Courage to Talk” acknowledges the important role families
play in the injury recovery process and the importance of family resilience,
sustained parenting and appropriate communication about the injury with
children of all ages to ensure their healthy development.
In support of Month of the Military Child, I encourage you to be mindful of these
military family concerns in your own practice and work to educate health care
communities about the issues confronting military families and how best to
address them.
Enjoy this issue of MHS Vital Signs!
Stephen J. Cozza, M.D.
Associate Director, Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress, USU
April is Month of the Military Child
Military children often face stress
related to deployments and time
spent away from a parent. They
may need additional support and
guidance to ensure they thrive,
from early childhood through
adolescence.
During April the Military Health
System recognizes Month of the
Military Child and offers resources
for parents and family members who provide children with the care they need to
grow and develop into maturity. Read more at bit.ly/8YPknW.
RESEARCH ROUND UP
Research Roundup: New
Studies Reveal Genetic
Changes That Lead to Cancer
In 2005, University of Michigan medical
researchers made the groundbreaking
discovery that mutant fused genes play a
role in many common cancers.
Fused genes form when
chromosomes (the structures
that carry a cell’s genetic information)
rearrange and bring two genes into
proximity that shouldn’t be together.
The DNA in the genes merges and
causes problems by activating certain
proteins.
“These researchers have shifted the
cancer paradigm with their discovery that
gene fusion is not limited to blood cancers
and that it can be related to androgen.
Their science is outstanding and will help
the military in our goal of moving to more
effective, individualized medicine,” said Col.
Karl Friedl, director of the Telemedicine and
Advanced Technology Research Center.
Finding recurrent gene fusions for a
specific type of cancer brings researchers
closer to making a specific test for that
cancer and offering novel ways to treat
it – perhaps even personalized drugs with
fewer side effects. Read more at
http://bit.ly/cfuHsk .
CONTACT US
Let us know what you’d like to see in
future issues of MHS Vital Signs.
Please contact
mhs_vitalsigns@tma.osd.mil
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Do You Know Your Drinking IQ?
With each deployment, military personnel and their families face enormous
challenges, and the stress and anxiety associated with separation can lead
many to misuse alcohol. April 8 was National Alcohol Screening Day but Miltary
Pathways continues to encourage all service members and their families to
complete a free, anonymous screening to assess their alcohol use and behaviors.
“NASD is a wonderful way to promote alcohol awareness. It is an opportunity to
provide soldiers with information and to explain to them what’s normal and what’s
not when it comes to alcohol use,” said Yvonne Wilbanks, Fort Benning Army
Substance Abuse Program. Read more at http://bit.lycc62o5.
Warrior Care Spotlight: “Dizzy” Clinic Aids Soldiers
With TBI Care
In March a multidisciplinary “dizzy” clinic at Walter Reed
Army Medical Center celebrated its first year of treating
active duty personnel who experience dizziness due
to traumatic brain injury. The clinic opened last year
to ensure that soldiers returning from deployment in
Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom
are seen by specialty providers in a timely manner.
Dizziness, headaches, visual impairment and changes
in hearing are common signs and symptoms of TBI,
according to the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury
Center, headquartered at Walter Reed. Many of the “dizzy” clinic’s patients
experience dizziness after sustaining injuries due to blast exposures from
improvised explosive devices, land mines, mortar rounds and rocket-propelled
grenades. Read more at http://bit.ly/9kYOmG.
MHS Announces New Medal of Honor Site
Medal of Honor Foundation in honoring those
U.S. military medical personnel who have been
recognized for the nation’s highest military
decoration, the Medal of Honor. Read more at
www.health.mil/medalofhonor.
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