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Murray Calls for Increased TBI Screening and Research after Study Reveals Long Term Toll on Service Members
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee and a member of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, issued the following statement after the Institute of Medicine (IOM) released a study on the long-term health consequences of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). The IOM study concluded that various forms of TBI are associated with long-term health problems including dementia, Parkinson's-like symptoms, seizures, and problems related to socialization and unemployment.
See more information on the Institute of Medicine’s study. A recent RAND study revealed that of the over 1.64 million service members who have deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, 19.5%, or about 320,000, reported experiencing a probable TBI during deployment. The study also found that 57 percent of those that had likely experienced a TBI had not been evaluated by a physician for a brain injury. Senator Murray’s Work: As a member of the Veterans Affairs Committee and Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, Senator Murray has worked to provide billions in increased funding for research and treatment for TBI and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
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