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The Doctor is in! Ask a Flight Surgeon!
- Thread starter FlightMD
- Start date
michael odell
Member
Hi there. Ive been searching on her but havent been able to find my exact situation. I am currently an Aircrewman in the Navy submitting an OCS NFO package and am about to do my annual flight physical. I told my corpsman I was submitting a package and needed to do a long form physial and he said that I need to do a completely seperate medical screening that took 30 days to process and entailed getting x-rays and a full eye exam as well as another long form physical. He called it an applicant physical.
My last command flight doc in Kaneohe didn't do this applicant physical. Before all I did was a long form physical and the anthropomorphic measurements. Is the applicant physical required for NFO?
My last command flight doc in Kaneohe didn't do this applicant physical. Before all I did was a long form physical and the anthropomorphic measurements. Is the applicant physical required for NFO?
Hey R/, I'm in the process of running down some medical documentation to prepare for MEPS and I had a question:
I have had 3 concussions: one in 2004 when I was 10 (LOC of 5 mins and amnesia of ~30mins), one in 2008 (no LOC or amnesia) and 2010 (no LOC or amnesia).
I suffer no ongoing effects from any of the concussions. However, I believe that the documentation for the 2004 and 2008 incidents may not exist due to the length of time that has passed. I scheduled a consultation with one of the leading concussion neurologists to get him to evaluate me, however will the lack of documentation be a problem for MEPS/NAMI? Would it be worth trying to run down the documents from the ER (only went for the first one) or my internist?
I also believe that I will need a Mild TBI waiver for the first concussion. If there are no ongoing effects, are these pretty easy to obtain?
Thanks!
I have had 3 concussions: one in 2004 when I was 10 (LOC of 5 mins and amnesia of ~30mins), one in 2008 (no LOC or amnesia) and 2010 (no LOC or amnesia).
I suffer no ongoing effects from any of the concussions. However, I believe that the documentation for the 2004 and 2008 incidents may not exist due to the length of time that has passed. I scheduled a consultation with one of the leading concussion neurologists to get him to evaluate me, however will the lack of documentation be a problem for MEPS/NAMI? Would it be worth trying to run down the documents from the ER (only went for the first one) or my internist?
I also believe that I will need a Mild TBI waiver for the first concussion. If there are no ongoing effects, are these pretty easy to obtain?
Thanks!
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Kind of a more general question than a specific one. Currently going waiting to class up for API and I would really like to play rugby again at some point in my life. I have been told by some guys in the fleet that I should definitely wait until I get to the fleet to do rugby, as getting hurt in the pipeline can make it easy to be shown the door. I've never had any real injuries from rugby, just sprained ankles and some bruises and such. If I was in the fleet and say needed to get stitches from a rugby match, would this cause a bunch of unwanted anal probing into my recreational activities or is it different in the fleet than this here at PCola, in regards to NAMI and aviation physicals?
RugbyGuy,
I'm with HAL Pilot. Stitches aren't a problem, but other stuff can be. Break a long bone and you're down for 6 weeks minimum, assuming all goes well. Depending on where you are in the syllabus, that might present problems. Break some bones in your hand and now you're looking at 6 weeks plus potential rehab, plus time to ensure you can do your job pushing buttons in the aircraft. One good kick in the head (at any point) and you've very probably derailed your career.
R/
I'm with HAL Pilot. Stitches aren't a problem, but other stuff can be. Break a long bone and you're down for 6 weeks minimum, assuming all goes well. Depending on where you are in the syllabus, that might present problems. Break some bones in your hand and now you're looking at 6 weeks plus potential rehab, plus time to ensure you can do your job pushing buttons in the aircraft. One good kick in the head (at any point) and you've very probably derailed your career.
R/
exNavyOffRec
Well-Known Member
I remember on my first carrier there was a rugby team, due to injuries sustained (concussions, broken bones, etc....) that led to people having to be left behind for underways the CO ordered it disbanded and no one was allowed to participated in contact sports without COC approval.
R/ is not his name, TimeBomb just puts that at the end of his posts as shorthand for "Regards"
michael odell
Member
Im just enlisted right now but I can tell you that while you going through any Navy pipeline you are in a fragile state especially as an officer. Once you get to the fleet you get your life back, of you had to get stiches I wouldnt see any type of probing as long as your injury doesnt affect your job and mission in the Navy.
Hoya,
Mild TBI cases are pretty common in SNA/SNFO applicants. NAMI will probably administer specific neuropsychologic testing to evaluate you for any subtle deficits. These tests have been normed against aviators, who generally do better on these types of tests than the general public. "Normal" scores on these tests for the man on the street is generally below normal/acceptable for aviation.
I'd recommend getting as much medical documentation as you can regarding your injuries. After that, it's pretty much up to neurology and neuropsych at NAMI.
Best of luck. Stop leading with your chin.
R/
Mild TBI cases are pretty common in SNA/SNFO applicants. NAMI will probably administer specific neuropsychologic testing to evaluate you for any subtle deficits. These tests have been normed against aviators, who generally do better on these types of tests than the general public. "Normal" scores on these tests for the man on the street is generally below normal/acceptable for aviation.
I'd recommend getting as much medical documentation as you can regarding your injuries. After that, it's pretty much up to neurology and neuropsych at NAMI.
Best of luck. Stop leading with your chin.
R/
Thank you for the advice sir, will do all of that. Out of curiosity, are the tests similar to the ImpactTest (i.e. measures response time and memory), or are they more in-depth Navy-specific tests?
Hoya,
Navy neuropsych testing is more specific for aviation skills. The test battery that was being used when I was in was based on a commercial product called Cogscreen AE. Lots of dual tasking tests combining auditory and visual processing. Reaction time is tested, as are a number of other higher functions like sustained attention, which are susceptible to degradation by head injury and medications.
R/
Navy neuropsych testing is more specific for aviation skills. The test battery that was being used when I was in was based on a commercial product called Cogscreen AE. Lots of dual tasking tests combining auditory and visual processing. Reaction time is tested, as are a number of other higher functions like sustained attention, which are susceptible to degradation by head injury and medications.
R/
Thank you for the advice sir, will just try not to worry about it until MEPS since it does not sound like there is much I can do (aside from not getting another concussion of course).
Atreyu, TimeBomb is correct but I did want to put your mind at ease a little bit. I have long had problems with the puff test, to the point where the readings were bad enough they thought the machine was malfunctioning once, partly because I flinch badly and I likely have thick corneas. After failing the puff test the docs have usually used another instrument called an applanation tonometer (the test is explained about halfway down this page) that apparently is more accurate, at least for me. Since my reserve center didn't have a working one of those for years though I have gone for ophthalmologic exams twice on my own dime and came out fine both times. They do a battery of tests on your field of vision and examine your eyes closely to check for glaucoma but it was relatively short and painless. Thick corneas was never mentioned by any of the flight docs I encountered as an issue, they were solely concerned with the glaucoma risk which is understandable.
So while definitely not a diagnosis I just wanted to let you know that what you have encountered is not unheard of and not the certain end of your flying career. If you want any more info PM me.