Early Detection of Blast Trauma in Front-line Defenders

Blast trauma is observed in a proportion of military personnel returning from deployment, and the after-effects can include physical (somatic), behavioural, psychological and cognitive symptoms. 

As diagnosis of blast trauma relies heavily upon patient-reported surveys of current symptoms, there is currently a lack of objective means to diagnose this condition, and to determine the extent of damage that has been sustained.

Experienced radiographer Nathan Tosh is developing a method to objectively identify and quantify blast trauma, to help front-line defenders manage their risk of irreversible trauma, and inform decisions about whether to proceed with further deployment.

The project involves comparing 2D MRS L-COSY results of patients exposed to different types of blasts, to determine what changes to brain chemistry are associated with certain types of blast trauma, and then determining whether these changes can be quantified to reflect the extent of brain trauma. Find out more about this project. 

Based at the TRI Innovation and Translation Centre in Collaboration with Siemens Healthineers, this project is part of the Diagnostic Imaging Translating Innovation Program, led by TRI CEO and Director of Research, Professor Carolyn Mountford. As a world-leading expert in magnetic resonance technology, this Program involves working with Siemens Healthineers to broaden the medical application of emerging technologies such as magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy. Read more about this program and the advanced MRS imaging technology.