This article was posted in " Military Health " in April, but I think it needs a  broader audience.  I am wondering if someone on the Vine can help solve Admiral Mullin's need for trauma and body scanning equipment...both the new handheld stuff and the full scan devices.

Deploying MRI Scanners

Posted by Editor

One of the key missions these days for the man who heads up America’s military establishment is getting MRI machines installed in combat zones.

That’s MRI for magnetic resonance imaging, a cutting-edge procedure that could help a lot in detecting the extent of battlefield shocks to the brain and how to treat them. As far as Admiral Mike Mullin, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, is concerned, deployment of such machines is a keen need. “I’ve actually made this a very high priority,” he says.

Two such MRI scanners are due to be shipped to Afghanistan within months.

Last year, at the height of the fighting season, more than 300 American warriors suffered mild traumatic brain injuries or concussions every month, often from exposure to a blast.

The military responded by putting in place new treatment procedures, out of fear that some of the troops involved may have suffered a mild traumatic brain injury or concussion.

The new rules require that any soldier or Marine near a blast be pulled from combat and examined for signs of concussion.

This entry was posted in Battlefield Medicine, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Military Health Technology.