ARMY AL&T


Scientists, combat developers, health care professionals, and leaders in head protection painted a complex picture of mixed progress at the 27th Army Science Conference from Nov. 29 to Dec. 2, 2010; a Head Protection Summit sponsored by Program Executive Office (PEO) Soldier Feb. 16-17; and the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) Institute of Land Warfare’s Winter Symposium and Exposition Feb. 23-25.


Their reports illustrate how far the Army has come since 2008, when Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates issued his June 26 memorandum, “Caring for Our Wounded Personnel and Their Families,” calling for a plan of research and development investments to advance state-of-the-art solutions for world-class medical care for PTSD, TBI, and other conditions afflicting Soldiers as a result of their combat service.


About two-thirds—64 percent—of Soldiers who have returned from fighting in Iraq or Afghanistan have TBI or PTSD, noted GEN Peter W. Chiarelli, Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, at the AUSA Winter Symposium. “The fact


We’re about to take a big step with the ECH. The ECH was expected to provide 35 percent greater fragmentation protection than the ACH, but testing showed the improvement to be 50 percent or more.


remains, these wounds are not well understood,” he said.


Dozens of research and development initiatives are underway to measure the many variables involved in preven- tion, detection, and treatment of TBI and PTSD, from how best to quantify the effects of blast on Soldiers’ helmets and their brains, to how best to treat the injuries, which can have long-term, potentially devastating impacts on day- to-day functioning and quality of life.


“There’s been an unprecedented level of investment … in traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress, and suicide,” said MG James K. Gilman, Commanding General of the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command (MRMC) and Fort Detrick, MD, at the Army Science


Conference. Gilman noted that MRMC is overseeing some 535 active projects representing about $750 million in investment.


Building a Better Helmet In the area of Soldier equipment, the Marine Corps and Army are prepar- ing to field the next-generation combat helmet. Meanwhile, the Army is lead- ing an initiative that looks ahead to the succeeding generation of helmets, an integrated headgear system that would protect the skull, face, eyes, and ears.


This fall, deployed and deploying Soldiers can expect to trade the Advanced Combat Helmet (ACH), introduced in 2002, for the Enhanced Combat Helmet (ECH).


The two helmets look nearly identical, but the ECH, a Marine Corps-led pro- gram, represents a major improvement in performance. The ECH is a little thicker and weighs 1 to 4 ounces less than the ACH, depending on the size. (The ACH, now in sustainment with more than 1 million fielded, weighs 3.06 pounds in a size medium.)


The ECH is a joint U.S. Marine Corps/U.S. Army developmental effort that will provide increased protection against ballistic and fragmentation threats. It uses advanced thermoplastic materials that require different manufacturing processes than those associated with resin-impregnated para-aramids. (U.S. Army photo courtesy of PEO Soldier.)


But there are much more significant differences in protection. “We’re about to take a big step with the ECH,” said MAJ Jason A. Morneault, PEO Soldier’s Assistant Product Manager for head protection systems, at the PEO Soldier-sponsored conference, where head protection experts from medicine, industry, sports, and academia gathered to discuss, collaborate, and coordinate on preventing and mitigating head injuries from ballistic and nonballistic (blast and blunt impact) threats.


APRIL –JUNE 2011 29


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