Walter Reed and NICoE Partner to Create Better Outcomes for Brain Injured Warriors

Photo By James Black | The National Intrepid Center of Excellence, or NICoE, a directorate of Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, helps active duty, reserve, and National Guard members and their families manage their traumatic brain injuries and accompanying psychological health conditions through diagnostic evaluation, treatment planning, outpatient clinical care, and TBI research. (Courtesy photo)  

BETHESDA, MD, UNITED STATES

03.28.2024

Story by James Black 

Walter Reed National Military Medical Center

Walter Reed and NICoE Partner to Create Better Outcomes for Brain Injured Warriors

By James A. Black – WRNMMC Office of Command Communications

Brain Injury Awareness Month: An Annual March Observance to Inform and Engage

The Difference Between Traumatic and Acquired Brain Injuries

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the American Medical Association, traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) and acquired brain injuries (ABIs) often produce the same symptoms and require similar care. However, these two types of brain injuries differ in terms of how the injury is sustained. In this article, we will discuss the differences between acquired brain injuries vs traumatic brain injuries.

Acquired Brain Injury (ABI)

An acquired brain injury is typically caused by some sort of internal occurrence. The Brain Injury Association of America defines acquired brain injury as an injury to the brain that has occurred after birth and is “not hereditary, congenital, degenerative, or induced by birth trauma.” Acquired brain injuries can be broken down into two groups: anoxic and hypoxic. Hypoxic brain injuries occur when the brain only gets a small amount of oxygen that is not enough for the brain to function. Anoxic brain injuries occur when he brain does not get any oxygen. There are three types of anoxic brain injuries:

• Anoxic anoxia takes place when the brain is supplied with no oxygen
• Anemic anoxia occurs when the blood does not have enough oxygen in it Brain injury from blood that does not carry enough oxygen
• Toxic anoxia happens oxygen in the blood is blocked from being used by toxins. Brain injury from toxins or metabolites that block oxygen in the blood from being us
Examples of causes of acquired brain injury include a stroke, exposure to toxic substances, medication misuse, and non-fatal drowning accidents. As mentioned, acquired brain injuries do not include degenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s.

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

A traumatic brain injury results from external force to the head such as a blow, shake, or bump. For example, you could sustain a traumatic brain injury in a car accident or in a fall. A concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury. A traumatic brain injury can also result from penetration of the brain by a foreign object or by part of the skull. This could occur from a gunshot wound in the head, for example.
While it is common to see brain injuries classified into groups like acquired and traumatic brain injuries, sometimes acquired brain injuries are considered to be the umbrella category that includes injuries like traumatic brain injuries and also injuries stemming from events like a stroke. In any classification scheme, it may be possible to bring a lawsuit to be compensated for your brain injury. The type of brain injury — whether acquired or traumatic — will have an impact on what type of case is brought and what evidence will need to be gathered.

Weapons of Modern Warfare Increase Concussive Impact on Service Members

“Whether they were rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) or enemy mortars, there were a lot of violent blasts that I was in close proximity to [and] it’s only by the grace of God that I’m here,” confided U.S. Army Lt. Col. Michael Harrison, reflecting on the multiple tours he served in Afghanistan. When Harrison returned to the United States in 2010, he started having headaches, anxiety, anger issues, and experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Harrison is one of more than 490,000 service members since 2000 who have sustained a traumatic brain injury (TBI), according to reports from the Traumatic Brain Injury Center of Excellence. TBI, considered one of the signature wounds of war in the 21st century, presents complex and challenging problems for many of our service members.
Walter Reed and NICoE: Championing Improved Outcomes for Patients and Families

During Brain Injury Awareness Month, observed during March, Walter Reed and the National Intrepid Center of Excellence (NICoE) partnered in organizing and hosting a variety of clinical education offerings primarily directed at providers who care for patients with a history of mild TBI.

NICoE is a Department of Defense (DOD) organization and the senior member of Defense Intrepid Network (DIN) for Traumatic Brain Injury and Brain Health.

All presentations were offered in-person at NICoE as well as online, to maximize outreach and include participation from DoD and non-DoD clinicians and researchers.
Events by NICoE this month included the following presentations: Virtual Reality, "Walk and Talk" Therapy, and Reconsolidation of Traumatic Memories: How Novel Interventions Can Improve the Care of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) (Guest presenter: Michael Roy, MD, MPH)

Exploring the Connections Between Orofacial Pain, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), and PTSD (Guest presenter: James Hawkins, DDS, MS)

Cognitive Performance Optimization after Brain Injury: Delivering “The Whole Pizza” (Guest presenter: David Brody, MD, PhD)

Cognition and Traumatic Brain Injury (Staff presenter: Wendy A. Law, Ph.D.)

What You Should Know About Tinnitus (Guest presenters: Michele Spencer, Au.D., CCC-A, CH-TM & LaGuinn P. Sherlock, Au.D. CCC-A, CH-TM)

Intensive Outpatient Program

NICoE’s Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) is a four-week interdisciplinary program for patients diagnosed with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and associated health conditions. Tailored treatment plans are created with patient, family, and provider input that focuses on the mind, body, and spirit. Patients learn self-management skills to increase resilience, manage symptoms, and enhance their well-being long-term.
Harrison, who is set to retire from the Army in June, said he has benefitted from his participation in the IOP.

“What’s most profound to me is how [NICoE] ties in all the various aspects of interdisciplinary medicine from physical therapy to neurology, to the pet [animal assisted] therapy to nutrition,” explained Harrison. “This team is world class. I don’t think there’s anywhere else on earth like this with a team that has the heart and that has this shared purpose.”

To learn more about brain injuries and therapeutic treatments, visit the below links:
https://health.mil/Military-Health-Topics/Centers-of-Excellence/NICOE
https://health.mil/News/In-the-Spotlight/Be-a-Brain-Warrior
https://health.mil/Military-Health-Topics/Centers-of-Excellence/Traumatic-Brain-Injury-Center-of-Excellence
https://www.health.mil/Military-Health-Topics/Centers-of-Excellence/NICOE/Clinical-Programs-and-Services/Clinical-Programs/Intensive-Outpatient-Program

• Date Taken: 03.28.2024
• Date Posted: 03.28.2024 16:01
• Story ID: 467295
• Location: BETHESDA, MD, US