TBI
Navy not doing enough to study long-term brain damage in aviators, lawmakers say
BLUF – A House investigation found that the Navy has not adequately studied or mitigated potential long-term neurological damage among naval aviators despite reports of memory loss, depression, anxiety and suicides in the F/A-18 community, with existing programs better suited to identifying acute injuries than tracking cumulative effects of repeated high-G forces and carrier launches. For Navy Medicine, the findings highlight the need for longitudinal brain-health research, improved exposure tracking and screening, and a culture in which aviators can seek neurological and mental health care without fearing loss of flight status or damage to their careers.
Military Health System experts collaborate with NATO partners on brain health guidelines to improve warfighter readiness
BLUF – Military Health System experts collaborated with NATO partners to develop new alliance-wide guidelines for mitigating the brain health risks associated with repetitive low-level blast exposure, publishing recommendations that include immediate protective measures, standardized exposure monitoring, and a research roadmap to improve long-term prevention and care. For Navy Medicine, these guidelines reinforce the growing emphasis on protecting personnel routinely exposed to blast during training and operations by strengthening brain health surveillance, harmonizing clinical practices with allied partners, and advancing evidence-based policies that support long-term warfighter readiness.
https://health.mil/News/Dvids-Articles/2026/07/17/news570192
Pentagon to roll out new test to assess troops’ cognitive performance
BLUF – The Pentagon is replacing the long-used Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metrics (ANAM) with a next-generation cognitive monitoring system designed to provide more sensitive, enterprise-wide assessment of service members’ brain health, enabling earlier detection of cognitive changes, improved traumatic brain injury evaluation, and more actionable information for commanders and clinicians. The phased rollout will initially prioritize deployed and deploying personnel before expanding across the force, and for Navy Medicine it represents a significant modernization of cognitive monitoring that could improve concussion management, longitudinal brain health surveillance, and clinical decision-making while supporting readiness for distributed and high-risk operations.
DHA Partners With Marines to Refine Portable TBI Assessment Technology for Austere Battlefield
BLUF – The Defense Health Agency and II Marine Expeditionary Force partnered to evaluate prototype portable traumatic brain injury assessment devices at Camp Lejeune, giving Navy corpsmen and medical officers hands-on experience to refine lightweight tools designed for rapid neurological assessment in austere, far-forward environments where prolonged field care is expected. For Navy Medicine, the initiative reflects the growing emphasis on equipping corpsmen with deployable diagnostic technologies that improve triage, support extended casualty management in distributed maritime operations, and help prioritize limited medical evacuation assets during future large-scale combat operations.