DoD TBI Numbers Web Page Is Now Online

Today, the Department of Defense (DoD) Military Health System (MHS) unveiled its new, comprehensive traumatic brain injury (TBI) numbers Web page.

The Web page, available at health.mil/TBInumbers and www.dvbic.org, features a year-by-year breakdown of TBI diagnoses within the U.S. military since 2000.

For each year, a series of pie charts demonstrates the breakdown of TBI by severity and also by armed service. Data for National Guard and the Reserves are also included. The numbers are not specific to any given theater of operations and represent all diagnosed cases of TBI within the military, regardless of where the injury was sustained.

The numbers have been collected from electronic medical records and analyzed by the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center (DVBIC) in cooperation with the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center (AFHSC). These numbers represent actual medical diagnoses of TBI, and are not based on health assessments or survey data.

The purpose of the DoD TBI numbers Web page is to provide a single, reliable set of figures representing service members who have been diagnosed with TBI. For years, members of the media, veteran service organizations and others have relied upon figures extrapolated from surveys, health assessments and questionnaires to report TBI figures which have been wide-ranging and ultimately erroneous. These figures have proven to be unreliable because they are not based on actual diagnosis by a licensed physician.

Learn more about TBI on Military.com.

The figures displayed on the DoD TBI numbers Web page are based on physician diagnosis, and documented on patient medical records through the use of International Statistical Classification of Disease and Related Health Problems (ICD-9) codes. ICD-9 codes are a universally accepted means documenting illnesses and ailments.

Numbers for the current year will be updated on a quarterly basis. A list of frequently asked questions and answers is also available on the Web page to provide more specific information to visitors.

DoD continues to work diligently to reduce incidents of TBI in service members both inside and outside of the war zone, as well as improve treatment protocols to ensure those afflicted recover as quickly as possible.