DoD Worldwide Numbers for TBI (non-combat and combat injuries)*
Welcome to the Department of Defense (DoD) resource of worldwide numbers for service members diagnosed with traumatic brain injury (TBI) since 2000. This information is designed to provide service members, their families, veterans, the general public, and other concerned citizens with the most comprehensive and accurate figures available regarding diagnosed cases of TBI within the US military.
Information posted here is collected from electronic medical records in cooperation with the
Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center and analyzed by the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center (DVBIC). The DoD provides information that is available in the medical records, most of which do not contain cause of injury or location. The diagnosis and severity of injury were determined using ICD-9 codes.
The numbers below represent actual medical diagnoses of TBI that occurred anywhere US forces are located, including the continental United States. Many of the larger numbers routinely reported in the media are developed utilizing sources such as the
Post Deployment Health Assessment (PDHA) or
Post Deployment Health Reassessment (PDHRA). These questionnaires are not diagnostic tools, but assessment tools with TBI screening questions. They reflect people who say they have certain TBI-related symptoms that may or may not mean they have sustained a TBI. For additional details about the data collection method and source of these TBI numbers, refer to our
Frequently Asked Questions. Use our
Contact form to submit questions.
Numbers for the current year and for the immediately preceding year are updated on a quarterly basis. Other numbers are updated annually.**
Click a year to view a report of the breakdown by severity and by Armed Forces branch. Incident diagnoses by calendar year.
| 2000: |
10,963 |
2005: |
12,211 |
2010: |
31,381 |
| 2001: |
11,830 |
2006: |
16,958 |
2011Q3: |
26,087 |
| 2002: |
12,470 |
2007: |
23,174 |
2000-2011Q3: |
229,106 |
| 2003: |
12,898 |
2008: |
28,567 |
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| 2004: |
13,312 |
2009: |
29,255 |
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* Includes TBIs from non-combat and combat related-causes. Common non-combat causes are crashes in privately owned and military vehicles, falls, sports and recreation activities, and military training.
** 2000-2009 annual numbers updated as of 16 MAY 2011
2010-2011Q3 annual numbers updated as of 15 NOV 2011
2000-2011Q3 cumulative totals updated as of 15 NOV 2011
Source: Defense Medical Surveillance System (DMSS) and Theater Medical Data Store (TMDS)
Prepared by Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center (AFHSC)
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