Combat stress can cause soldiers long-term brain damage

Notice that this study did not come out of the US. It came from Australia.

Combat stress can cause soldiers long-term brain damage, research finds
Sydney Morning Herald
Date
September 4, 2012
Bridie Smith

A US marine has a close call after Taliban fighters opened fire. Photo: Reuters

THE stress of combat can change the way soldiers' brains are wired, resulting in a reduced cognitive function, such as the ability to focus on tasks.

Published in the journal PNAS this week, the results showed that exposure to ''combat stress'' - including armed combat, enemy fire, combat patrols and improvised explosive device blasts - affected the structural integrity of the midbrain and its ability to interact with the pre-frontal cortex.

Julie Krans, a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of New South Wales, said the study findings illustrated that exposure to highly stressful situations wasn't just expressed via post-traumatic stress disorder.

''[The soldiers] may not be suffering a clinical disorder but they are still impairing their daily life,'' she said.

Dr Krans said more attention should be given to the effect of combat stress on cognitive functions such as attention, memory, problem-solving and decision-making.

The research studied a group of NATO soldiers before they were deployed to Afghanistan and compared the results with tests taken six weeks after the troops returned from a four-month stint.
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