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WASHINGTON — Far from winding down, the numbers of wounded U.S. soldiers coming home have continued to swell. The problem is especially acute among those who fought in Afghanistan, where nearly four times as many troops were injured in October as a year ago.
Amputations, burns, brain injuries and shrapnel wounds proliferate in Afghanistan, due mostly to crude, increasingly potent improvised bombs targeting U.S. forces. Others are hit by snipers' bullets or mortar rounds.
With Veterans Day on Wednesday, wounded veterans from the recent conflicts consider the toll of these injuries, and the rough road ahead for the injured. Of particular concern are the so-called hidden wounds, traumatic brain injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder that can have side effects such as irritability and depression.
Since 2007, more than 70,000 service members have been diagnosed with traumatic brain injury — more than 20,000 of them this year, according to the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center. Most of the injuries are mild but leave symptoms such as headaches and difficulty concentrating.
Vince Short, 42, a former Army specialist who suffered brain injuries in a 2003 roadside bomb attack in Iraq, said he can't help but feel for the soldiers coming home from Afghanistan with similar wounds.
"I cry out for them. It's tough. It's hard to put it in words," Short, who served with the District of Columbia Army National Guard, said in an interview at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Washington, where he receives weekly physical and mental therapy.
Thanks to the therapy, he said, he's in a good place. But in the early years of his recovery, he said, he found it difficult to return to work, and his marriage fell apart. Short said he was confident and motivated before he was injured. Now, he has memory problems and suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder.
"At that point, there was still a lot of panicking going on inside of me because it's like, 'What's going to happen to me?'" said Short. "I used to have a career. I used to have a good solid marriage. I was doing really good, and now look at me."
In Afghanistan, spinal injuries have increased significantly, due mostly to the powerful explosives used in the improvised bombs that rattle U.S. troops inside heavily armored vehicles. For those injured by these bombs, recovery can mean a year or more at a military medical hospital like Walter Reed Army Medical Center, followed by months, years or even a lifetime of therapy and coping with disability.
At least 1,800 troops were wounded in Afghanistan in the first 10 months of this year, about 40 percent of all the wounded U.S. troops in Afghanistan since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Nearly 1,000 of those injuries occurred in the last three months.
In Iraq, more than 600 troops have been wounded so far this year.
By far, improvised explosive devices are the biggest killer of U.S. troops in both countries.
In Afghanistan in the last four months, the volume of explosives used to make IEDs, as well as the number of IEDs, have increased, Col. Wayne Shanks, chief of public affairs for the International Security Assistance Forces in Afghanistan, said in an e-mail.
Spinal injuries account for one in six of the wounds treated in the Afghanistan battle theater, Shanks said. Of those injuries, about 15 percent involved motor or sensory changes such as a broken back or spinal cord injury, Shanks said.
He said the military has a "concerted counter-IED" effort and is working with the local population to encourage their help.
Garry J. Augustine, deputy national service director of Disabled American Veterans, said improved protective gear and advancements in battlefield medicine have helped — but they also have resulted in higher survival rates for those with extreme wounds that often proved fatal in previous wars.
"Getting over the initial injury is one thing, but going about dealing with your life, the rest of your life, with these injuries is quite another," Augustine said.
Sgt. Dirk Bryant, 28, of Creston, Ill., a member of the Illinois Army National Guard, credits those advancements for his survival. He was on patrol near Kandahar, Afghanistan, on Jan. 30 when a bullet cut into his hip and left a softball-sized wound. The experience left him emotional and, at times, depressed as he wondered if he'd be able to walk again.
Through rehab and determination, he said, he has made a near-full recovery. He's currently a student at Northern Illinois University, aspiring to become a museum curator or historian, and could very well go back to Afghanistan to fight.
"I just feel very fortunate," Bryant said. "There's a lot of people that weren't as lucky as I was."
Dr. Joel Scholten, associate chief of staff of rehab services at the VA Medical Center in Washington, said experts are keeping an eye on injury patterns in the war zones so medical treatments can be adjusted as necessary.
"When the war's over, the veterans will still have issues related to service that we'll need to be here for them," Scholten said.
Even when injuries don't involve combat, the recovery process can be a time of reflection and bonding with others in the hospital wards, said retired Lt. Col. Kurt Kosmatka, 50, who came down with a disease while in Iraq in 2007 that's weakened his immune system and left him with respiratory problems. He spent more than a year at Walter Reed and has been at the VA hospital in Washington since January.
He said he feels for those who are getting wounded who don't have strong family connections to help them through the process.
"It was pretty tough on some guys and girls," Kosmatka said.
_____
On the Net:
Paralyzed Veterans of America: http://www.pva.org/
Disabled American Veterans: http://www.dav.org/
Veterans Affairs Department: http://www.va.gov/
© 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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- Public Discussion (27)
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9.1
{"commentId":10612527,"authorDomain":"supperfood"}
You know the Department of Veteran Affairs is keeping tabs on this. This is why the VA needs to get away from being a public health hospital and back to serving those that served in combat.
If nothing changes these guys will get caught up in a VA system that is full of people providing medical care to the general veteran population and not these guys we sent into harms way.
{"commentId":10612527,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"supperfood"}
- 1 vote
#1 - Wed Nov 11, 2009 4:53 AM EST{"commentId":10612680,"authorDomain":"brigidsmom"}
Well it would stand to reason that while the manchild POTUS tries to make up his mind about what to do next with "his war" in Afghanistan, he would send the additional troops, as back up for the soldiers that are already there. I talked with many soldiers that are here, stateside, and even they realize that the men and women in Afghanistan are sitting ducks. Obama can't blame this one on Bush...he claimed the Afghan War as his own. Now their blood is on "His" hands. He is proving every day, that he is an inexperienced, self-serving idiot and has no business being in charge of anything. Either bring them home or send more troops..........the decision really isn't that difficult. Do you really think he cares two shoots about our soldiers....hell, he couldn't even go to Ft. Hood in a reasonbale amount of time. How many more soldiers must die before he gets off his high horse?
{"commentId":10612680,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"brigidsmom"}
- 3 votes
#2 - Wed Nov 11, 2009 6:10 AM EST{"commentId":10612871,"authorDomain":"supperfood"}
Yea he is guilty. Bush and his neoconservatives were so busy making money acting impulsively in Iraq and some say alcoholically ---- soldiers died while no bid contractors got rich. There is no rush.
{"commentId":10612871,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"supperfood"}
- 2 votes
{"commentId":10612902,"authorDomain":"supperfood"}
Yea he is guilty. Bush and his neoconservatives were so busy making money acting impulsively in Iraq and some say alcoholically incompetent ---- While soldiers had their arms and legs blown off and died not mentioning the cost PTSD disability and compensation. All of this while no bid contractors got rich. There is no rush.
The VA will be paying for Bush's war 100 years from now.
{"commentId":10612902,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"supperfood"}
- 2 votes
{"commentId":10621604,"authorDomain":"marcv-1"}
Good comments coming from all sides on this one!
Both administrations, past and present have complete responsibility for what is happening currently in Afghanistan. It was my understanding as it was for many others in this post that the Taliban and AQ was our ONLY focus after 911. I believe in the beginning it was! U.S. Forces crushed the Taliban at every point they turned. I supported that decision completely. Somewhere in all this BS, it went from retaliation for 911 into a profit making scheme for the politicians and the Military industrial complex. I can assure you with all that I have, Bush and his inner circle of pals were not the only ones in this conflict. Democrats are at fault as well. The situation in Iraq and Afghanistan is no different than Vietnam. Were we there really to help protect the South from communism and mass murder? Maybe, I do know this for sure, BUT – A lot of companies and politicians made a ton of money during the Vietnam War, just like these same individuals are making a ton on our conflicts in the Middle East today! Ike warned us of these behind the curtain criminals in his farewell speech to the American people.
{"commentId":10621604,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"marcv-1"}
{"commentId":10621814,"authorDomain":"supperfood"}
This is a story about wounded American soldiers.
{"commentId":10621814,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"supperfood"}
- 1 vote
{"commentId":10612951,"authorDomain":"the-spirit"}
Gee, maybe they need reinforcements. Ya think? Imagine some cops needing backup and the police chief saying, "I'll need some time to think about it. Give me a few days."
This commander-in-chief is criminally incompetent.
"The insurgency in Afghanistan didn’t just happen overnight. And we won’t defeat it overnight," the president said. "But we must never forget. This is not a war of choice. This is a war of necessity. Those who attacked America on 9-11 are plotting to do so again. If left unchecked, the Taliban insurgency will mean an even larger safe haven from which al Qaeda would plot to kill more Americans."
Barack Hussein Obama, August 17, 2009
Wake me up when Obama FINALLY becomes president and stops blaming everything on Bush.
{"commentId":10612951,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"the-spirit"}
- 2 votes
#3 - Wed Nov 11, 2009 7:25 AM EST{"commentId":10612993,"authorDomain":"supperfood"}
Yes Bush and no experience ideologues are to blame for this mess. The US Department of Veteran Affiars will be paying for this mess 100 years from now.
Reinforcements. Yes ;lets be macho and send more soldiers without thinking about what we are going to do with them. No one I mean no foreign invader has ever controlled Afghanistan for long Yes lets send more soldiers for the VA to help.
{"commentId":10612993,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"supperfood"}
- 2 votes
{"commentId":10613247,"authorDomain":"roxanne1000"}
Exactly Jones, all the neo-con armchair generals keep forgetting that no past superpower has succeeded in conquering the warlike tribes of the Afghan mountains.
We will soon be there for a decade now, and we will be fighting there for many more decades at the cost of trillions if the repubs have their way. Which is kinda weird because I remember them complaining nonstop that "we're too broke to fund health care reform."
But "no big deal, let's forever keep throwing tens of thousands more troops to be maimed & killed plus hundreds of billion$$ more into the vast mountains & countless caves of Afghanistan."
{"commentId":10613247,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"roxanne1000"}
- 1 vote
{"commentId":10613304,"authorDomain":"supperfood"}
Well said Roxanne.
These people who complain about Obama are not interested in what we do there. Nor are they Patriots loyal to the United States.
They just want republicans elected so they can continue to drain the economy giving tax money through no bid contracts and tax breaks for their friends Not to mention vested interests up to now legal (passing out to politicians) bribes.
{"commentId":10613304,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"supperfood"}
- 1 vote
{"commentId":10613136,"authorDomain":"hengaoxin"}
{"commentId":10614757,"authorDomain":"donkeyridder"}
The military has seen an increase in the number of wounded soldiers at home, too, thanks to the successful radical Muslim attack on Fort Hood by Major Dr. Hasan and President Barack Hussein Obama's lack of leadership and failure to engage the enemy on all fronts, including the home front.
{"commentId":10614757,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"donkeyridder"}
- 1 vote
#5 - Wed Nov 11, 2009 10:04 AM EST{"commentId":10614834,"authorDomain":"supperfood"}
Was Bush's attack on Iraq a radical Christian attack? I am sure there are going to be more jobs at the United States Department of Veteran Affairs hospitals working with war disabled combat veterans long into the future.
{"commentId":10614834,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"supperfood"}
- 1 vote
#6 - Wed Nov 11, 2009 10:09 AM EST{"commentId":10614916,"authorDomain":"donkeyridder"}
It had the backing of many atheist liberals, so it wouldn't seem so. And which Bush and which attack just to be clear? Are Obama's attacks in Afghanistan radical Marxist Democrat assaults, since we have a full radical Marxist Democrat US government?
{"commentId":10614916,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"donkeyridder"}
- 1 vote
{"commentId":10614959,"authorDomain":"supperfood"}
I am not sure what atheism has to do with this topic. The topic is young Americans dieing and wounded in combat.
Like I said the VA will be busy with taxpayer money treating these combat wounds long into the future.
{"commentId":10614959,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"supperfood"}
- 1 vote
#7 - Wed Nov 11, 2009 10:16 AM EST{"commentId":10615026,"authorDomain":"donkeyridder"}
I wasn't sure what it had to do with radical Christian attacks on Iraq, either, but you brought it up. I then threw in the religion of atheism and it must have hit the sweet spot.
{"commentId":10615026,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"donkeyridder"}
{"commentId":10615613,"authorDomain":"supperfood"}
This is a seed about Americans getting wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is not about Marxism or atheism. Yes it hit a spot.
{"commentId":10615613,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"supperfood"}
- 1 vote
#8 - Wed Nov 11, 2009 10:52 AM EST{"commentId":10633637,"authorDomain":"donkeyridder"}
Great! But the article is about increasing American wounded. Delving into the root causes of our military failures leading to the increasing casualties is a logical extension of the topic. Obama's failed policies and dismal leadership are root cause number 1.
{"commentId":10633637,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"donkeyridder"}
{"commentId":10634075,"authorDomain":"supperfood"}
Okay however do not ramble. This is not an seed about the evil Muslim empire. Nor is it about whether Obama is a communist or what ever. This is about the increasing combat casualties.
{"commentId":10634075,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"supperfood"}
- 1 vote
{"commentId":10634213,"authorDomain":"donkeyridder"}
Yea he is guilty. Bush and his neoconservatives were so busy making money acting impulsively in Iraq and some say alcoholically incompetent ---- While soldiers had their arms and legs blown off and died not mentioning the cost PTSD disability and compensation. All of this while no bid contractors got rich. There is no rush.
The VA will be paying for Bush's war 100 years from now.
So it is about the evil Bush empire, using war caualties as a springboard. Now I get it.
{"commentId":10634213,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"donkeyridder"}
{"commentId":10636117,"authorDomain":"supperfood"}
Yea ya got it. Yes Iraq was a war that did not need to happen and the American taxpayers. The ones having no representation in congress will pay for it. In this case disability payments for those wounded.
{"commentId":10636117,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"supperfood"}
- 1 vote
{"commentId":10637793,"authorDomain":"donkeyridder"}
You liberal Democrats have a ship-load of representation in Congress and you're killing people in Iraq and Afghanistan. And your Maoists are killing people in China, and your Marxists are killing people in Russia, and your radial Islam is killing people in Afghanistan, Iraq, Indonesia, Africa, Israel, Saudia Arabia, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, and Fort Hood Texas. Live up to your preaching. Get your beloved PoS Marxist punk President Obama to pull out and pull out now. Close all bases not on US soil. Dismantle all nuclear weapons. Get Obama to let everyone know just how dangerous he and his psychopathic supporters are.
{"commentId":10637793,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"donkeyridder"}
{"commentId":10627815,"authorDomain":"fromano"}
there will be more injured and killed the troops need back up but with oboma the muslim in the whitehouse he will delay to make sure more americans are hurt
{"commentId":10627815,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"fromano"}
- 1 vote
#9 - Wed Nov 11, 2009 8:26 PM EST{"commentId":10633207,"authorDomain":"supperfood"}
I wish those Israeli's who feel they can influence Americans and American foreign policy please stand up and take a bow.
{"commentId":10633207,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"supperfood"}
- 1 vote
{"commentId":10680202,"authorDomain":"fromano"}
BILLY JOE BOB YOU MAKE NO SENSE And we do have a black muslim in the whitehouse
In a few years everyone will know the truth
{"commentId":10680202,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"fromano"}
{"commentId":10680352,"authorDomain":"supperfood"}
What will they find out Muslims have souls? lol This thread is about wounded Americans. Why do you care your not even an American?
{"commentId":10680352,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"supperfood"}
- 1 vote
{"commentId":10695182,"authorDomain":"fromano"}
they will never find a soul in a muslim any so called religion that trains children 5 years to be homicide bombers how can you even think what you wrote I think you are a muslim using a false name to even try to mention the words souls and muslims in the same sentence
{"commentId":10695182,"threadId":"721631","contentId":"3488629","authorDomain":"fromano"}
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