WRAIR creates dose-response curve to predict the effects of blast overpressure
In June 2025, the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research began developing dose-response curves which use a mathematical formula to describe the relationship between blast exposure during military training and its health consequences. Dose-response curves allow military training to be optimized so that it meets critical learning goals for service members while minimizing health risks.
The relationship between blast exposure and the brain health of service members has been the subject of military medical research for more than 20 years. It began when training instructors at Marine Corps Base Quantico asked why some service members reported headaches, insomnia, attention deficits, and memory loss following exposure to low level explosive blast in routine training. Anecdotal and self-report survey evidence emerged quickly that service members across the Forces who trained with certain weapons reported similar symptoms.
“Talk to service members with years of experience with blast exposure or heavy weapons use and they often describe these conditions,” said Dr. Walter Carr, research psychologist at WRAIR’s Blast Induced Neurotrauma branch, commonly called BINT. “However, the exact prevalence of these conditions needs focused documentation. It has been our effort of many years to take the next step after this self-report data and actually document the biological effects of training with these weapons.”
It is this focused documentation that allowed scientists from WRAIR to develop these dose-response curves. Researchers visited many training locations and used research-grade sensors to measure the blast exposure magnitudes of the weapons used in training as well as the effects on the body via blood samples, behavioral measures, eye function, auditory processing, and more.
“If you have an applicable dose-response curve, you can explore opportunities to structure training to reduce adverse effects,” said Dr. Carr. “We have compiled what may be the largest set of data in the world on effects of blast exposure in military training. Our goal is to use that data to create a practical, useful product for the military’s health hazard assessment processes.”
By developing these dose-response curves for stakeholders and leaders, WRAIR is providing an important new tool towards the overall mission of protecting force health and optimizing performance for service members.
“When a service member puts on a uniform, they take on a great responsibility,” said Dr. Carr. “It is the Department of Defense’s responsibility to keep service members healthy and safe both while they wear that uniform and after they take it off. That’s what WRAIR does.”
For more information about WRAIR’s blast exposure research, visit the website: [https://wrair.health.mil/Biomedical-Research/Center-for-Military-Psychiatry-and-Neuroscience/Blast-Induced-Neurotrauma/](https://wrair.health.mil/Biomedical-Research/Center-for-Military-Psychiatry-and-Neuroscience/Blast-Induced-Neurotrauma/)
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