Aviation Medicine

Hey, I was just wondering if finasteride or minoxidil is banned in military aviation? I am going to apply into Air Force.

Hi everyone, can't find any other threads about kidney stones. Do they screen for kidney stones at flight physicals? I had a kidney stone during the summer of 2019 and reported it to DoDMERB and they let it slide without the need for a waiver. According to this MSD, "History of recurrent renal colic or single episode of renal colic with retained stone(s)" is disqualifying but a single stone is not disqualifying. I'm currenty an AS200 in AFROTC about to be an AS300 and I want to go for the pilot board. I'm afraid that if I get a pilot slot, I'd get DQed at the flight physical if they find I have retained stones. Getting DQed from rated is fine with me, but I want to s…

I know this topic has been brought up in the past and I am wondering if anyone has updated information on the matter. I had two ACL and Meniscus surgeries after which I gained full functionality. What would be the impact of this when having the flight physical ? Cheers in advance for any help !

I went through IFC-1 at WP more than a year ago with dry eye that did not need a waiver. Currently a few months out from EAD and reporting for UPT. I am wondering if punctal plugs are allowed to alleviate dry eye symptoms or if I would run into issues with flight medicine after reporting to UPT? Thanks for any help in advance!

I've passed my flight physical, but I see once one arrives at your UPT base you have to go through a few more medical exams before you're officially medically qualified. I see the list as "Audiogram, Optical, PHA, and Dental". Is this experience pretty similar to getting your initial flight physical done all over again, or more like a typical check-up with your doctor? I'm not a huge fan of things completely out of my control, so some more information on this process is appreciated. It's been a while since I had my flight physical so hopefully I'm still able to pass all those tests the same.

I don't have the specifics number but is there a regulation against having a thin Cornea? It's only on one eye and my eye doc told me "it wasn't nothing to worry about" because in the two years he's checked it, it has not progressed. Anyone run into this hurdle before? Were you able to still fly?

Hey all. I was picked up by a guard unit pre-covid. I am MEPS complete no waivers or anything needed and scheduled for FC1 next month. In my glorious stupidity I was playing basketball with a couple friends and messed up my ankle pretty bad. Had an MRI and doc said I need surgery... Torn ligaments, but he says he can have me back running and cutting in 4 months fully cleared. Yes I am communicating with my unit, but just wanted to get some advice from ya'll. Anyone have any knowledge or experience if I will require a re-check at MEPS or once I'm healed go to wright patt and get the sign off there? Second if I do have to go back to MEPS is the wait time 6 months or can I g…

I know this topic is in the “Aviation Medicine” category but I don’t really know where else to post. So I have been picked up for a guard unit and I am going to go to MEPS in the next few weeks. I am pretty healthy overall but when I took a look at my weight on a scale, I am about 3 lbs under the max for my height (max weight for my height is 180). I understand the AF says that you need to be at least 5 lbs under to join. I am not sure what my BMI is but I am relatively muscular, so I am guessing that is a contribution to my overall weight. In the scenario that you are either slightly under the max or over the max weight when you process through MEPS (say +\- 2l…

Looking at rushing ANG squadrons or doing AFRES "Civil Path to Wings" once I finish my degree. I had weird palpitations at night and went to a cardiologist to get it checked out, who was adamant that I had severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea and referred me to an ENT to do a sleep study. In the meantime I did a holter that showed some scattered PAC's and some runs of AVNRT SVT that had no clear trigger and weren't solely at night. I did the sleep study which showed an AHI of 9.5, "mild" OSA, and the tech also wanted to diagnose me with restless leg syndrome but it's never bugged me and I don't want to take benzos. DoDi 6130.03 (the MEPS manual) says that Current…

What's the current regulation on hypertension meds? I am currently on Lisinopril and Amlodipine for controlled essential hypertension and was wondering how this would affect flight qualification. I know monotherapy does not require a waiver, but how about combination therapy? With a #1 nomination to the Air Force Academy, I'm looking at my chances of me showing up to Colorado already knowing I'm not even close to pilot qualified before I even take the flight physical years later.

I let my Flying Class II physical lapse (I'm in a non-flying/no fly pay job, currently). How many years can I go without a Class II exam before I have to do a Class I or initial to get back to flight status? IOW how many years beyond expiration before I have to jump thru hoops?

I work in the healthcare field and my last TB skin test was positive, I went through all of the appropriate xrays and I am completely clear. I have never had any signs or symptoms. Is this going to be an issue at a physical? And do I need to do the Prophylactic treatment regimen? Thanks in advance for anyone that can help out. Taylor

Good Evening! This week I received the unfortunate news that I got DQ’d for Hearing Loss, History of Cholesteatoma (rare ear disease for those interested) and History of Chronic Back Pain. Now I’m not one to give up that quickly so for those of you interested or willing to help out I’ll give a quick background on my situation. Last October I was picked up for a pilot slot in a heavy unit flying KC-135’s. After submitting a lot of paper work for the known medical issues above, I was finally accepted to MEPs. While at MEP’s I was unable to pass the hearing test (barely) and was DQ’d for the same 3 things, but with the option for a waiver. So I Immediately scheduled an ap…

Has anyone read the updated 48-123. I am a RPA pilot select, according the AFI I am only required a IFCIII and MFS (phycological). All IFCIII items can be processed as all FOMC and BOMC locations. I have completed all IFCIII requirements and they are packaging my stuff to send to Wright Patt for a 2808 to get signed. Wright Patts response is that the Regulation is wrong and RPA pilots need an IFCII and that everything will need to be done at location Wright-Patt. DAFMAN date 8 December 2020, so anyones educated thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Hey everyone! I am currently filling out my Civilian LO application, and the last thing I need to do is decide my top rated AFSCs. I am super worried about not passing the flight physcial due to a microdestomy I had. As much as I want to be the one behind the stick, serving as an officer means so much more to me. Between Pilot, RPA, CSO, and ABM, do any require flight physicals that are going to give me the best odds of getting around the microdestomy? Thank you so much for yall's help, and if you have any experience with getting a microdestomy, I would love to hear it.

I’m leaving AD Army (non-aviation) for an AF ANG unit. I have a couple mild medical issues linked to rucking which could garner some disability. Are they worth claiming prior to FC1 and ANG service? I suspect claiming them would cause more trouble than they’re worth. Obviously the ANG slot is much more important to me than x amount of disability, but any input is appreciated.

From the time I’ve contacted my AFR recruiter to submitting all my medical records for Meps, it’s been a solid 6 months and I have yet to be scheduled for a physical. Every response from Meps took over two weeks, sometimes 20+ days. Long story short my medical records weren’t in order and I had sent duplicates. Everything has been corrected since then and that was almost a month ago. I am contacting my recruiter weekly and I’m getting the same response from him, waiting on guidance from Meps. Is anyone else experiencing this issue? When I was going for the Navy they cleared me for a physical in about a month. Where do I go from here? I’m so eager to serve my country as an…

Does anyone know the process for prior enlisted? Do we still have to go to MEPS even though we had to when we enlisted? Does the FC1 staff just take our medical history from when we enlisted? If there are any enlisted guys on here who went through the process or if anyone knows that would he great.

Hey y'all. Got a situational question that probably doesn't have a right answer. I'm a civilian pilot, been applying/interviewing for fighters for about 2 years now. I've got spondylolysis (previous stress fracture in my back) that I'm pretty sure will hang me up medically. My understanding is that it's waiverable, but on a case by case basis, with the main focus being on the ejection seat. I don't want to give up the dream of fighters, but the Civil Path to Wings (CPW) application came around and I decided to apply. This would skip T-6s and go straight to T-1s, meaning my back may not be a problem becoming a pilot in the USAF. So, if anyone has experience gett…

I got out at ADSC after flying for 12 years and have been out completely for 1.5 years now (not in IRR). I just got hired for a flying position at a ANG unit and have just begun the process with their recruiter. I'm looking for advice on navigating the process smoothly, especially the medical part. Since I have 10% VA Disability for Tinnitus and 10% for knee pain the recruiter asked me to get an independent evaluation by my current doctor. I plan to submit those findings and hopefully will be approved to go to MEPS. I'd appreciate any gotchas specific or general that come to mind with medical and navigating the break in service. Thanks in advance!

Hi All, I'm awaiting my FC1 for my guard job. I'm always around lots of people everyday for my job so I think sooner or late I may get exposed to COVID. Let's say this happens and I test positive and recover with no issue. When I go for my FC1 in a couple months, will having a previous positive COVID test cause issues for getting my FC1? I have yet to find any guidance on COVID and FC1. Thanks.

I had a single episode of atrial fibrillation earlier this year that was caused by low magnesium and dehydration. Labs and ekg confirmed that a-fib went away, and I had low magnesium. I was on medication for a month, but was taken off under the direction of my cardiologist. I otherwise have a healthy heart, as confirmed by an ultrasound of my heart. I haven't had an episode since, and I just go back for a checkup in about a month. I know I'll have to disclose it to the FAA, but would the AF look at this physical? Any advice for moving forward would be greatly appreciated. P.S. I already messaged stuckindayton, and he said he wasn't experienced in it.

So I’ve done quite a bit of research on the topic. Based on what I’ve found, BAV is disqualifying for all classes of flight. It is, however, waiverable. That’s where I’m a little confused. Moderate aortic regurgitation is waiverable for FCII and for low G aircraft but it is not waiverable for FCI. Does that mean that flying for the Air Force, ANG, or reserves just isn’t an option for me? I have moderate leakage. No other issues. No symptoms. Just happened to be found on an echo I had done due to family history or heart issues. Based on my understanding, I could fly heavies under FCII but since I can’t pass FCI I can’t fly heavies. Am I understanding that correctly? Any in…

Hello everyone, I'm currently a Junior in highschool looking to join rotc in college, most likely navy to become a pilot, hopefully fighters, and was wondering if my hypothyroidism which is controlled with levothyroxine would dq me from the military. Some people on other forums have said you can't take any kind of daily medicine so I'm just wondering if that would be an issue or if it's something I can get a waiver for. Thank you.

Hello, by chance is there a pollen allergy waivers to be a Navy aviator?