WASHINGTON — Eye wounds are devastating for deployed troops, and the past decade’s conflicts have created ample opportunities for that type of injury, with the prevalence of explosive devices, projectiles, chemicals, biohazards, lasers and extreme environmental conditions.

FORT HARRISON, MT — For some veterans, “insulin resistance” is not only a physiological condition, it is a state of mind — one the VA Montana Healthcare System in Fort Harrison hopes to overcome with a program that pilots the use of insulin pens.

I recently learned through the evening news that a Dutch scientist, Ron Fouchier of the Erasmus Medical Center Rotterdam, Netherlands, has genetically engineered a deadly form of the H5N1 bird flu virus into an easily transmissible form that has the potential to cause lethal human pandemics.

Several recently released studies conducted by a number of federal agencies examine the effects of combat on women, who now make up 15% of American military forces.

WASHINGTON — Reporting the results of an investigation begun after an Army physician opened fire and shot more than 40 people at Fort Hood in 2009, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) says the military services need to do a better job of complying with physician and privileging requirements.

WASHINGTON — Continuing a pattern of easing the way for Gulf War veterans to seek care and compensation, VA has extended the presumptive period for them to file claims for benefits for previously undiagnosed illnesses.

WASHINGTON — On Dec. 27, when the U.S. military was only two days away from completing its pullout of troops of Iraq, came casualty reports from Afghanistan, a stark reminder of the war still being fought: Three soldiers died, in Paktia, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when their unit was attacked with an improvised explosive device.

WASHINGTON — Work therapy has been a part of VA rehabilitative programs for decades, but only since 1984 has it been codified under a national clinical initiative. With the return of the latest generation of veterans, who are entering VA care when a more holistic approach to treatment and rehabilitation is taken, compensated work therapy (CWT) has begun to be embraced fervently by veterans and clinicians.

WASHINGTON — Servicemembers who suffer from PTSD or other medical problems often seek treatment outside the military and veterans’ healthcare systems when they return from deployment. Civilian providers do not always have the expertise to provide optimal care, however.

The VA’s My HealtheVet is not only the most widely disseminated personal health record system in the United States, it also is likely to become the model for such systems nationwide.