From Business Insider · Kelsey Baker · · 1m 30s
The war wound nobody war-games: a toothache
Army dentists say untreated dental emergencies could pull troops off the line and clog evacuation in the next big war.
In brief
Army dentists say untreated dental emergencies could pull troops off the line and clog evacuation in the next big war. Dental care is the cheapest way to keep troops in the fight, and the military barely plans for it. Originally reported by Business Insider.
A toothache takes a soldier out
Army dental leaders warn that oral pain makes it hard to eat, think, or operate a weapon. That renders troops non-mission-capable without a single shot fired.
“hidden casualty load”
Exercises pretend it away
Most major Army exercises leave dental emergencies out of their casualty scenarios, so commanders plan triage and evacuation with an incomplete picture of demand.
“urgent need for accurate dental emergency modeling in war-gaming”
Past wars already showed the bill
Dental emergencies made up 19% of treatment at hospitals near the front in Iraq. Dental disease and other non-battle injuries drove nearly 16% of evacuations in the fight against ISIS.
Close care returns troops fast
Almost all patients seen by forward dental teams went back to duty after one or two visits. Send them far to the rear instead and they can be gone for a week.
Drones broke the evacuation plan
Attack and surveillance drones over Ukraine have made quick medevac nearly impossible, so units must now hold and treat patients in the field for long stretches.
“we now need to plan and prepare for prolonged patient management in the field”
The fix is small and mobile
Fewer than 1% of Air Force dentists deploy, and Army teams found their field gear unused for a year with the sterilizer broken. The answer is pre-deployment work and light kits near units.
“is a low-hanging-fruit solution for medical as a whole”
The short version
Dental care is the cheapest way to keep troops in the fight, and the military barely plans for it.
