Clinical Research Directory

From Blast Injury to Multicompartment Dysfunction:

Blast injuries can cause swelling and pressure problems in more than one part of the body. This study will review existing medical records of people treated for blast-related injuries to learn how often these problems affect multiple body areas and whether they occur at the same time or one after another. Researchers will examine records for signs involving the abdomen, chest, limbs, or head, and explore how these findings relate to injury severity, resuscitation, organ function, and patient outcomes. No treatment will be assigned as part of this study, and patient care will not be changed.

Blast-related Regional Anaesthesia and Peripheral nerVe Injury Evaluation

This randomized study will examine whether ultrasound-guided regional anaesthesia (a nerve block) contributes to new or worsening peripheral nerve problems after blast-related limb trauma. Blast injuries themselves can damage nerves, making it difficult to determine whether later numbness, weakness, or neuropathic pain is caused by the injury, surgery, or the nerve block. Adults with blast-related upper- or lower-limb trauma who need pain treatment will be randomly assigned to one of two standard pain-management strategies: regional anaesthesia plus multimodal analgesia, or multimodal systemic analgesia without a planned nerve block. All participants will receive appropriate rescue pain treatment if needed. Neurological function will be documented before treatment and reassessed during hospital care and follow-up. The main outcome is a new or worsened peripheral nerve deficit 30 days after treatment. The study will also assess pain relief, opioid use, function, neuropathic pain, and safety events up to 6 months.

Precision Biomarkers to Detect Brain Injury in Active-Duty United States Special Operations Forces With Repeated Blast Exposure

This is a 4-year, longitudinal study of 100 active-duty Navy SEALs. The goal of the study is to determine whether repeated blast exposure affects SEAL brain health and to develop an initial diagnostic testing protocol that detects repeated blast brain injury.