According to data from a recent live-fire mortar exercise, mortars are causing “overpressure,” dangerous pressure waves and leading to decreased Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) functioning. The ANS manages bodily responses such as “fight or flight,” temperature, and gastrointestinal processes, which in turn impact a person’s blood pressure, heart rate, and more. In an article for Military.com, Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Stephen Xenakis, member of CERL’s Executive Board, is quoted about the effects of blast injuries on the human body. 

Brig. Gen. Xenakis is an adult, child, and adolescent psychiatrist with many years of clinical, academic, and management experience. He is the Executive Director of APPA, an advisor for Physicians for Human Rights and the Center for Victims of Torture, and an Adjust Professor at Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. He is also a member of the CERL Executive Board. Read his bio here. 

The views expressed here are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of any organization or university.