Aviation Medicine

I'm looking for some advice on what to do in this situation. I'm a civilian pilot with a first class medical who will be applying to the guard/reserve in about a year. Starting back as far as I can remember I would get sick an average of once a month or so (sometimes more, sometimes less) with stomach aches/intestinal pain lasting 1-3 hours. I chalked it up to a weak system and didn't make any changes. Doc said I might have "IBS". I had some tests done early on in life and they came back negative (including Celiac). Around last March it began to get much worse. I was getting stomach achs an average of twice/week. My Dad has these exact same symptoms and once he stoppe…

Would a fractured coronoid process keep someone off of flying status? My friend has seen two dentists and an oral surgeon with regard to this, they all said there is really nothing you can do except let it heal on its own. Which should take about 6 months. I know that he has trouble eating foods that require a lot of tearing, but other than that he still gets along with no other physical issues. But again is this something that would cause him to be placed DNIF and if so for how long?

If you have any questions about whether you can (or should) take a dietary supplement, do two things first: Read about the supplement here--Human Performance Resource Center. This is a DOD-wide resource for legality, Talk to your Doctor and the installation Health and Wellness Center (HAWC). For flyers especially, military personnel have different standards beyond the FDA/USDA. Get the approval first.

I recently received my 1042 to return to fly after a year and a half on the ground. I wanted to pass along my experience in case some poor bastard has to go through any of this. The issues I had included vertigo, an unrelated brain cyst, meningitis as a side effect from the brain surgery, and headaches as a result of the meningitis and surgery healing process. I'll also throw in my experiences at ACS. I am (now was) a fighter guy and after a BFM sortie experienced some dizziness and vertigo. The vertigo was diagnosed as Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV). The big take away from this for me was that there are only a handful of issues that lead to vertigo a…

So I live in P-cola stationed with the navy. I've been seeing the orthodontist at Eglin, which is an hour and a half drive away. I really don't mind the drive and I'm happy with the care provided, however there have been some issues. Today, I had an appointment that had been canceled on me before, so before I made the drive today, I called to make sure I was still good to go. I was told yes, so I proceeded on my way to Eglin. Well, as luck would have it, I got a call right as I was about to pull through the gate...my doctor needed to cancel my appointment...30 minutes prior to my appointment time. So, not only did it take an act of God to get off the flying sched…

When going for your FC1 prior to UPT, I'm sure they request all medical records. Do they pretty much leave it to you to bring everything? Or do they take your insurance information and obtain the medical insurance history, then request records based on that? Just wondering if insurance history is involved in the process at all. Thanks!

Anyone received it? I am getting two stories, it is up to the max of your military pay or straight up replaces lost civilian pay, regardless of mil pay. Example: milpay is 7k a month. Civilian pay, 8K a month... incap is 8K Make sense?

Had a kid ask me a question about dental req'ts. Recent OTS rated board select for RPA pilot. He has four lower back teeth broken off to the roots, non-restorable, but not painful or any observed decay. Will he pass the dental exam, or will they require him to have them pulled to eliminate the roots? I know cavities require fixing before they'll pass you, but I don't know about teeth that are simply broken to the gum line.

FYI for the general Air Force population: The new AFI 10-203 published the other month switched the PT restrictions on an AF 422 from the Exercise Physiologist back to the PCM (your normal doc) and everything is documented on the AF 469. So the AF 469 generated at your appointment for whatever condition you have can include, all on one form, the Duty Restriction (what you can't do at work), Mobility Restrictions (whether you can deploy), Fitness Restrictions (what PT activities you shouldn't perform), and Fitness Assessment Exemptions (self-explanatory). This is essentially switching back to the procedures in 2006. The reason this may not have been announced or impleme…

This is mostly aimed at the other medics, but I'd like to hear from some retrainees on the forum. The other week, a patient came to my office for a special duty clearance with a very short turnaround. The member had previously applied for an unrelated job and was medically cleared by the person I replaced. He obviously wasn't selected, so he applied for a different position. As he had been approved relatively recently for the first job, he thought it would be a pretty quick review process and relative formality for me to review his record and generate his 422. He's not wrong in that assumption; if another 4E reviewed and cleared him, I hoped the clearance process woul…

I want to become a fighter pilot. I have peanut and pine nut allergies. They are not severe or anything. I do not need any medication for them. Worst that happens is that I vomit. Nothing else. Would it be difficult to get a waiver in the Air Force? (I want to try to get into an Academy, preferably the AFA) Thank you!

Anyone had any experience with a pre-separation physical? What does it entail?

Hey guys, I hate to start a new thread but searched for a while and didnt find anything exactly like what I was looking for. Your insight would be greatly appreciated. I have an upcoming FC1 at Wright-Patt the first week of December. I believe I am right on the boarderline regarding my refraction error and am unsure which way it will go. That is my only issue. Other than that I should be completely fine during the FC1. My question to you is, since I am 26 and 1/2 years old and will be 27 in May 2013, I was wondering what options I have if I DQd because of my refraction error. I have not had PRK but would be willing to get it done ASAP after the FC1. I am a civ…

All, Please welcome a new moderator to the forum. Deaddebate has been hanging out for a while and providing advice, so I've given him the official title. I'm sure he will continue to give the same quality of contributions that he has previously, the only difference is that he now has the ability to bitch-slap the profile of anybody who feels the need to act like a prick to him.

I just recently discovered via research on Google that I have a Pilonidal cyst. I'm a current/qualified AF pilot and was wondering if anyone here has had or known of someone who successfully dealt with this issue and returned to fly? It looks like it's a pretty simple procedure. I just don't want to talk to a flight doc before I can get some feedback.Anyone? Here's what I found in AFI 48-123 regarding the issue. 6.44.20.9. Pilonidal cyst, if there is a history of inflammation or discharging sinus in the 2 years preceding examination. Surgery for pilonidal cyst or sinus is disqualifying until the wound is healed, there are no referable symptoms, and no further trea…

Please only respond the baseops way, straight and to the point Passed MEPS physical but my right ear was borderline on the max decibel level. Scheduled for fc1 in December. My question is if I am 'slightly' over on the decibel level is that a waiverable scenario or auto DQ? Any previous experience or flight doc knowledge would be more than appreciated.

Hey guys, If I have monofixation disorder, what is the liklihood I could get a waiver to become a USAF Combat Systems Officer? I don't think I could pass that depth perception test and am just curious if they would waiver it or just disqualify me. If I can't would Navy NFO work? Thanks, George

Greetings, First off I know this isn't necessarily a flght question but this seems a good place to get the answer I'm looking for, so forgive me if I'm wasting time. I've been searching through numerous AFI's and AFPAM's about this issue, but I cannot seem to find a straightforward answer. I know that for a SMOD physical, normal color vision is a requirement. However, is it possible to get a waiver? Has anyone ever heard of it? The only waiver guide I can find says a waiver will not be granted for a flight physical. I'm highly interested in the 13SX field (Missile side to be exact) but I'm green weak and I cannot pass a PIP exam. Other than that I don't th…

Hi, I am a USAFA cadet, but I have taken the OVT depth perception test many times for solo flight considerations. The results were failures, so I am wondering if one needs to pass the OVT to be CSO medically qualified?

Hey, Does anyone know if having excessive cupping of the optic disc is grounds for DQ or if it is possible to get a waiver (if necessary)? So far the pressure tests were within the limits but the cup to disc ratio was 0.4 and I think it is suppose to be below 0.3. Any information would be much appreciated. Thanks

About ten years ago when I was a young teenager I had low blood pressure which lead to dizziness and occasional fainting when standing up too fast. I never had any periods of unconsciousness, nor did I suffer any head injuries (I'd typically just land on a couch or sit down on the floor if I felt one coming on). I refuse to lie to a direct question, like those about blood pressure and fainting spells, so I plan on disclosing this info. I have had totally normal blood pressure ever since. Should this be a problem trying to get a UPT or CSO training slot through OTS? Ditto for Navy pilot/NFO.

Going for my FC1 in a couple weeks, medical office requested hospital records from a concussion I got in 2002, and another in 2004. Both were mild, loss of conciseness for a minute or two, hospital did the MRIs said there was no damage, rest for two weeks and I was good to go. Never have had any problems since the incidents. Anything to be worried about or just standard procedure for all head injuries? I searched for the regs online, all I found on head injuries is regs if you are already have had a flying physical. Any help is appreciated.

So when talking to an AD Air Force Officer recruiter over the phone I found out I had a medical DQ and was not eligible to apply. However, my AFRes recruiter recently told me that I was indeed eligible if I were to fill out a waiver. I then called my AD recruiter back and he simply stated that "The Active Duty is ran completely different than the Reserves/Guard." So do all requirements vary (AFRes/ANG/AD)? Or did the AD recruiter just not want to go through the hassle of going through the waiver process? I'm guessing my best bet to find out about the ANG would be to call my local unit. Thanks, Hawk

I am an air traffic controller and therefore have a class II medical. I have two CONUS TDYs coming up where I will need to fly across the country. I know it is somewhat ironic but I get very nervous when I fly . I am considering asking the flight doc for something to take the edge off for these flights. I can be DNIC during the TDY as I won't be doing any controlling. I'm just afraid that even being a nervous flier might have some negative impact on my medical. I decided to post this issue here to hopefully get some insight from fliers and medical professionals before deciding to actually bring this up with the flight doc or not. Thanks in advance for any info/opinions…

I am in a tough situation and would really appreciate any and all advice that I can get, so thank you in advance for taking the time to read this post. I got sponsored by a reserve unit for the June board this year. Went through MEPS, and submitted my paperwork requesting my FC1. My recruiter came back and said that I failed depth perception, got a "PASS C", and that I am DQ'ed, that there is no waiver, and that I am done and cannot be a pilot. I find this very hard to accept as I have devoted everything in the past few years to achieving this goal. Luckily my sponsoring unit has not dropped me, and they are asking around to see if there are any solutions. I have tried lo…