Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Leading Cause Of Medical Evacuation Out Of War Zones: It's Not Combat Injury

UK troops carry a wounded soldier to a waiting Blackhawk Medevac helicopter after a prolonged contact with Taliban insurgents. (Photo from BBC News in Pictures)

From E! Science News:

The most common reasons for medical evacuation of military personnel from war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan in recent years have been fractures, tendonitis and other musculoskeletal and connective tissue disorders, not combat injuries, according to results of a Johns Hopkins study published January 22 in the Lancet. "Most people think that in a war, getting shot is the leading cause of medical evacuation, but it almost never is," says study leader Steven P. Cohen, M.D., associate professor of anesthesiology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and a colonel in the U.S. Army Reserves. "As in the past, disease and non-battle-related injuries continue to be the major sources of service-member attrition and that's not likely to change. It's likely to get worse."

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My Comment: The same can be said about a good percentage of fatalities in war zones. Fatal accidents have always comprised a good percentage of those who are located in conflict zones.

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