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My son went through maeps and was temporarily disqualified. The CMO wanted all his medical records.
He's had a few broken bones, a concussion and an allergic reaction to a medicine. CMO is now sending records to Surgeon General. Why? All of these issues have been completely resolved. Never in a million years did we ever think he couldn't get in. People are amazed as to how hard it is to get in. We are so frustrated. Any advice?
How many concussions did he have, which medications is he allergic to, and which bones were broken and how severe were the breaks (like are there metal parts holding the bones together)?
My son went through maeps and was temporarily disqualified. The CMO wanted all his medical records.
He's had a few broken bones, a concussion and an allergic reaction to a medicine. CMO is now sending records to Surgeon General. Why? All of these issues have been completely resolved. Never in a million years did we ever think he couldn't get in. People are amazed as to how hard it is to get in. We are so frustrated. Any advice?
It's MEPS- Military Entrance Processing Station.
From my nearly decade of military recruiting experience, I can tell you that-
Medication Allergies are ALWAYS a disqualification, and ALWAYS require a waiver from the surgeon general.
Concussions/head injuries are ALWAYS a disqualification, and ALWAYS require a waiver.
Why- what happens on a battle field in Syria, in a medical tent, when we give him a medication and he has an allergic reaction? We have to pull our resources from treating war injuries to treat his allergy.
TBIs/brain injuries like concussions can cause long term issues like post-concussive syndrome and increase likelihoods of future depression, suicide, PTSD, and homicide. These are PROVEN correlations and can happen after only 1 childhood head injury. Head injuries are one of the leading causes of war time casualty or injury, and result in lifetimes of disabilities for some. The effects of every head injury compound, meaning a second head injury has worse effects than a first. Since he's already had a first head injury, his likelihood of serious side-effects and syndromes is worsened if he has a second.
If it was a mild allergic reaction and a mild concussion without a loss of consciousness, he has a really good chance at getting a waiver. I wouldn't be too worried. If he needed an epi-pen or was unconscious for more than 30 minutes, there is almost 0 chance he will get approved.
He had one concussion in 10th grade. The breaks were not severe. No pins or plates or surgeries. Fractured the growth plate in elbow and his collar bone when he was 10. He is allergic to Bactrim, which he had a reaction to and was admitted to hospital until they figured out it was an allergy.
From my nearly decade of military recruiting experience, i can tell you that-
medication allergies are always a disqualification, and always require a waiver from the surgeon general.
Concussions/head injuries are always a disqualification, and always require a waiver.
Why- what happens on a battle field in syria, in a medical tent, when we give him a medication and he has an allergic reaction? We have to pull our resources from treating war injuries to treat his allergy.
Tbis/brain injuries like concussions can cause long term issues like post-concussive syndrome and increase likelihoods of future depression, suicide, ptsd, and homicide. These are proven correlations and can happen after only 1 childhood head injury. Head injuries are one of the leading causes of war time casualty or injury, and result in lifetimes of disabilities for some. The effects of every head injury compound, meaning a second head injury has worse effects than a first. Since he's already had a first head injury, his likelihood of serious side-effects and syndromes is worsened if he has a second.
If it was a mild allergic reaction and a mild concussion without a loss of consciousness, he has a really good chance at getting a waiver. I wouldn't be too worried. If he needed an epi-pen or was unconscious for more than 30 minutes, there is almost 0 chance he will get approved.
He had one concussion in 10th grade. The breaks were not severe. No pins or plates or surgeries. Fractured the growth plate in elbow and his collar bone when he was 10. He is allergic to Bactrim, which he had a reaction to and was admitted to hospital until they figured out it was an allergy.
Also, broken collar bones always go to the surgeon general but in my experience, are always cleared.
Key word is that he fractured his "growth plate" which is complex and requires detailed follow-ups with orthopedic doctors and precise measurements to ensure there are no length discrepancies in his arms. Were those done, and did they come back normal?
Having had to be admitted to the hospital for an allergy could be problematic in getting him cleared. Are you familiar with Stevens Johnson Syndrome? Does he have any risk of that as a reaction to Sulfa drugs? Bactrim is a sulfa drug, and this is one of the most dangerous forms of allergy reaction to a drug.
DODI 6130.03, the regulation that covers this (you can google it) states that any system allergic reaction to food is a disqualification. The regulation does NOT address when drug allergies are OK, or aren't OK, which is why they ALWAYS go to the waiver authority. If it's not clearly written in DODI 6130 as a yes or no, the MEPS will always defer to the waiver authority.
Collar bone breaks and growth plate breaks are also not addressed in the regulation, so therefore the MEPS will usually defer to the waiver authority (SG) to make the decision.
Bottom line, you likely have nothing to worry about from the concussion unless unconscious for more than 30 minutes or post-concussive syndrom symptoms. You have nothing to worry about from the collar bone. You have nothing to worry about from the growth plate if ALL orthopedic follow-ups were done and there is no length disparity between arms.
I would be very worried about the allergic reaction. In my experience, if it's anything more than hives/benadryl, it almost always results in a permanent disqualification and a denied waiver. Since he was hospitalized, this makes me think there was respiratory involvement, which the SG won't clear/approve.
The SG needs to be comfortable to know he will survive if he's on a convey, and there's a roadside bomb, and he has a dirty wound, and the FIELD MEDIC with no access to any medical records and no way to know if someone has allergies, administers Bactrim, that your son will be fine. He'll get a couple hives, maybe itch a little, but ultimately be fine. If Bactrim is going to create a medical emergency, this waiver won't get approved. Bactrim is a routine antibiotic, and could be accidentally administered in such a situation.
Does he need an epi-pen? If he ever accidentally receives Bactrim or a Sulfa drug in a field hospital in Iraq or Afghanistan when unconscious, and without his medical records, will he go into anaphalyxis or die? Will he risk respiratory distress or heart attack? If the answer to any of these questions is yes, he needs to find a back-up plan to the military.
If he is accidentally given Bactim, will Benadryl, over the counter, be enough to clear any symptoms? If the answer to this is yes, he has a really good shot at getting an approved waiver.
I am surprised your friends and family are acting like it is surprising that the military would be worried about drug allergies. This is one line of work where you're very likely to be injured and treated in a literal field somewhere, where no one has any idea of your allergies. Of course we are worried about drug allergies. We don't want to kill someone in a field hospital!
He had one concussion in 10th grade. The breaks were not severe. No pins or plates or surgeries. Fractured the growth plate in elbow and his collar bone when he was 10. He is allergic to Bactrim, which he had a reaction to and was admitted to hospital until they figured out it was an allergy.
You have to think of it like this. If his medication allergy is severe and is a commonly used medication then there may be a strong chance he will be brought in unconscious or uncommunicative. In the field they won’t have access to all his medical records. They’re focused on keeping him alive for treatment at a hospital. He could have a severe allergic reaction to the medication during transport and die. In field combat a concussion is very possible without being hit in the head merely from nearby explosions. Overturned military transports happen all the time. A concussion is also possible in the Navy when encountering rough seas. We had one guy knocked out merely calling out his rack. He was out of commission for days. When we knew we were hitting rough seas we would put the toes of our boots under our mattress to help keep us from falling out. I found it easier to sleep on the diamond steel deck plates in the engine room.
Hi, thanks for your response. He needs no episode pen. His reaction was a headache, and his skin got red and hot. There was no respiratory reaction. As far as his collar bone and growth plate, both healed up perfectly. He was able to pitch a baseball for years after.
Hi, thanks for your response. He needs no episode pen. His reaction was a headache, and his skin got red and hot. There was no respiratory reaction. As far as his collar bone and growth plate, both healed up perfectly. He was able to pitch a baseball for years after.
Awesome. I would think that if that's all true, his waiver should get approved.
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