Saturday, May 25, 2019

War Veterans and FTD

I am sitting here writing this two days before Memorial Day is celebrated in the United States. More and more, too many people see this as just one more 3-day weekend for picnics, short trips or, here in the northeast, it is the day the swimming pools open.

Yes, it is all of those. None of these should take away from the reason we celebrate Memorial Day. It is the day our country has set aside to remember and honor all of those who have given the ultimate price of their lives in order to protect all Americans and our country.

What better time to talk about a subject that is getting quite a bit of attention and a lot of research. It is being investigated as to whether Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) increases the risk of dementia with particular interest in FTD.

TBI has been getting a lot more attention since the Gulf and Afghanistan Wars due to the use of Improvised Explosive Devises (IED's). The incidence of TBI's among those serving in those wars is much higher than during any other war. With the recognition of those facts, more and more research is being done on the comparison of Veterans with Traumatic Brain Injuries to those without. 

The National Institute of Health has publicized a study of over 188,000 veterans. The number of those who had a TBI diagnosis were 60% more likely to develop dementia. Yes, that is 60% increase in risk!

Interesting to me is that research programs are continuing to see how many of these cases have led to FTD compared to other dementias, including Alzheimer's. In the same study of veterans that I just mentioned found that TBI's were more than 4 times more likely to be present in FTD than other forms of dementia. If this is true, if 100 veterans were diagnosed with dementia brought on by traumatic brain injuries, 80 of them would be FTD and only 20 to be spread among all the other dementias.

There are additional continuing studies on these findings. After discovering this in veterans, the researchers are considering whether this is true of anyone who experiences traumatic brain injuries. These could be from playing sports, accidents or any hits to the head. This is the reason so much more attention is being paid to the importance of preventing TBI's and concussions in sports. 

I can only speak for myself, but when I was younger I had confirmed diagnoses of two concussions. I also had head injuries at least once a year, usually to the front of my head. My family would joke that we finally knew it was Summer when Cindy had a huge (and very painful) lump on her forehead (usually from falls down to the concrete). I also know, from speaking to others with FTD, many had suffered concussions and/or head injuries in years past.

I am not implying that head and/or brain injuries are the only or even the largest cause of FTD. For instance, I also have a family history of FTD and dementia. My only thought is that these head injuries may have made me the likely one in the family to develop FTD instead of others. 

It may be years before we know if these studies pan out to anything but, to me, it is reassuring that such studies are being done. One more reason I support the AFTD.

I must end with a huge and sincere expression of appreciation to all who died to defend our country, to the families who went on without them and also to all those whom have been dealing with injuries ever since their service. Yes, I do know Memorial Day is only for those who died, but when I visit the VFW post and see the artificial legs or scars from head injuries, how can I not include them? Their lives have been changed forever as well.

It is okay, though, to still enjoy the day off as well!  Just avoid those crowds, noises and commotion of the celebrations. I know I will be staying here at home the entire weekend. Oh, wait! I do that every weekend... Okay, I'll grill some burgers, after I put out the flag.

2 comments:

Amanda said...

Thank you for this timely research and information, Cindy.

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