At least 20,000 U.S. troops who were not classified as wounded during combat in Iraq and Afghanistan have been found with signs of brain injuries, according to military and veterans records compiled by USA TODAY.Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J., founder of the Congressional Brain Injury Task Force, says he is "wary that the number of brain-injured troops far exceeds the total number reported injured," and estimates that as many or more than "150,000 troops may have suffered head injuries in combat."
The data, provided by the Army, Navy and Department of Veterans Affairs, show that about five times as many troops sustained brain trauma as the 4,471 officially listed by the Pentagon through Sept. 30. These cases also are not reflected in the Pentagon's official tally of wounded, which stands at 30,327.
Why the discrepancy? Because soldiers whose injuries are discovered after they're sent home aren't included in the official casualty list.
But they're working on fixing it, natch. Aren't they always.
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