Finally common sense on TBI-PTSD link

Blasts bad for brain


By BROOKES MERRITT, SUN MEDIA

It comes as no surprise to Edmonton's Master Cpl. Paul Franklin that soldiers who suffer concussions from bomb blasts are far more likely to develop post-traumatic stress disorder.

A study published last month in the New England Journal of Medicine looked at more than 2,500 U.S. Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans and says soldiers knocked out by a bomb blast are almost twice as likely to suffer PTSD as soldiers who are only dazed or confused by a blast.

In turn, dazed soldiers are almost three times as likely to suffer PTSD as those who suffered no injury.

Franklin was maimed in Afghanistan in 2006, when a roadside bomb ripped through his vehicle, tore off both his legs and set his head on fire.

He didn't black out but said the explosion was massive enough to make "Swiss cheese" of his head.



"I was in a daze, just watching the world go by. A blast like that liquefies your brains, you end up losing higher functions for simple tasks. I have difficulty spelling now and I can't sleep as well as I used to."

He sees the potential for bomb blasts to lead to mental health issues, but cautioned against academics who oversimplify the correlation.

"There's potential to say the brain damage caused by a concussion alters brain chemistry and increases your risk of developing PTSD, but just seeing a blast like that is enough to make someone depressed, and those feelings can cause further anxiety disorders."

Dr. Greg Passey, a Vancouver-based PTSD expert and military veteran, said brain trauma coupled with exposure to battle events could easily lead to PTSD.
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http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Canada/2008/02/20/4861246-sun.html

Amazing that some people think one sets off the other instead of two things happen. What is the result of a bomb blast? Bodies blown apart. If that isn't a traumatic event, nothing is.