Assessment and treatment of common persistent sequelae following blast induced mild traumatic brain injury

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Schultz, Billie A.^{a; b; *} | Cifu, David X.^{b; d} | McNamee, Shane^{a; b} | Nichols, Michelle^{b; c} | Carne, William^{b; c}

Affiliations: [a] Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Hunter Holmes McGuire Veterans Medical Center, Richmond, VA, USA | [b] Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA | [c] Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center, Henry M. Jackson Foundation, Hunter Holmes McGuire Veterans Medical Center, Richmond VA, USA | [d] Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Program Office, Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, DC, USA

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 989 619 3217; Fax: +1 507 255 1625; E-mail: schultz.billie@mayo.edu

Abstract: The ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and terrorist activity worldwide have been associated with an increased incidence of blast injuries. While blast injuries share similarities with blunt or penetrating traumatic injuries, there are unique mechanistic elements of blast injury that create increased vulnerability to damage of specific organs. This review highlights the mechanism of blast-related injury, describes the common sequelae of blast exposure that may impact rehabilitation care, and summarizes the intervention strategies for these blast-related sequelae.

Keywords: Blast injury, polytrauma, rehabilitation

DOI: 10.3233/NRE-2011-0659

Journal: NeuroRehabilitation, vol. 28, no. 4, pp. 309-320, 2011