TBI/PTSD Study Featured in JAMA

Newswise — The Aug. 13, 2008 edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) includes a study, "Prevalence of Chronic Pain After Traumatic Brain Injury," authored by Charles W. Hoge, M.D., Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU).

The study determined that chronic pain is a common complication of traumatic brain injury (TBI) and independent of psychologic disorders such as post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression. The chronic pain is common even among patients with minor injuries to the brain.

The study was a synthesis of 23 studies and featured 4206 patients. Hoge, an assistant professor of psychiatry, performed a large cross-sectional study of 2525 U.S. Army Infantry soldiers with combat exposure in Iraq and Afghanistan. The study represented the Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation Enduring Freedom veterans and compiled evidence with the use of questionnaires given at 3 to 4 months after their return to the United States to provide appropriate time for assessment of postconcussive symptoms. The Uniformed Services University is located on the grounds of Bethesda's National Naval Medical Center and across from the National Institutes of Health. It is the nation's federal school of medicine and graduate school of nursing. The university educates health care professionals dedicated to career service in the Department of Defense and the U.S. Public Health Service. Students are active-duty uniformed officers in the Army, Navy, Air Force and Public Health Service, who are being educated to deal with wartime casualties, national disasters, emerging infectious diseases, and other public health emergencies. Of the university's more than 4,000 physician alumni, the vast majority serve on active duty and are supporting operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere, offering their leadership and expertise.