Aviation Medicine

Hi, first post... I was wondering the possibility of obtaining a waiver for having one kidney. My kidney was not removed by surgery, I was only born with one kidney. My FAA medical examiner is a Nephrologist and had no qualms with issuing me a first class medical. I have no other or related underlying health problems. Is this an automatic deal breaker or is there any precedent for this type of situation? I appreciate any info, Thanks.

Doc, I have Hashimotos disease (hope I spelled that one right) and I am about to send applications out for UPT slots in reserve units. The condition has been treated for quite some time now, so my question is can a waiver be issued for non-rated individuals prior to entering UPT? Also, should I disclose this info immediately or wait until I get a slot? Does the Air Force even have to know about this condition? Thank you in advance, weis5on

Hey guys. So here's the deal. I passed my FC1 with flying colors back in March and felt great. Started experiencing a chronic fatigue situation maybe around June and enlisted in August with the expectation that with some rest and a healthy lifestyle I could shake the fatigue situation off before heading to OTS in January. Well that hasn't happened so I've had to bump my OTS date back a couple months and now I'm under pressure to get it resolved. I've had some additional testing done and doctors can't find anything wrong with me but I feel like I got hit by a truck. Doctors have stated that it isn't really uncommon but often times it is not a diagnosable condition, and it …

Does that sound like something that could be a potential disqualifier? My teeth are very temperature sensative. I only brush my teeth with warm water, too hot hurts, and too cold hurts. Thanks.

MD, I'm an active flyer. I've been suffering from pretty bad heart burn at night, especially lying down. Usually I end up vomitting. The pain seems to go away when I sit up. It seems when I am TDY the heartburn is more common. Is this acid-reflux? Is there anything over the counter I can take which is legal? I usually take tums or rolaids with no luck. Can I expect treatment for this to DNIF me for a while? Regards Magicrat

Question Wondering if non malignant skin cancer is DQ for pilot. I went to the dermatologist the other day and said that s what i had any info. i dont want to get it fixed if its DQ, but its a potential health problemo Future Dart driver

I went to an ENT specialist and he said I have a deviated septum. He suggested a Septoplasty and a Tubinectomy. My concern is I am about to take the FCIA exam in the near furture. Will the surgery have a negative effect on getting the physical certified? Would it be best to have the surgery before or after the physical? Also if the surgery is completed before the physical is there a specified time for recovery before the physical can be completed.

Hello, Quick question. I'm a non prior officer candidate that had some trouble doing the piss test at MEPS and just recently at the latest UA. I pretty much had to wait around for three hours each time and had a very hard time with it and managed to do it last minute prior to getting sent home. I don't want this to be a regular thing in a 20 year career with the anxiety and I recently got information on AFI44-120 Attachment 13 which allows you to get a waiver with proper documentation. My question is I saw my local physician who wrote up the paperwork and I submitted it to our base flight doctor. He seemed confused as he had never seen the waiver or form before an…

I've been told I need to get the SG to sign off on a knee scope I had almost 10 years ago for mild chondromalacia of the patella before I can go to MEPS. Does anyone know why this is a big deal? The only thing I can think of is my medical file is missing a sheet with post-surgery/therapy evaluation. I have an appointment with my doctor slated for next week to take care of that, but any advice on what is needed to get the SG to sign off on it would really be appreciated.

Hey Docs or anyone else who can help, I was awarded a pilot slot for the active duty, but just found out from the the people who gave me my F1C down at Edwards that I have exoporia which is supposed to be a divergence of my eyes at near vision. Now I'm not at all knowlegable in areas of vision problems because I've never had any, but I just don't want to give up on my dream without a fight. Is there anything at all that I can do or do just have to accept the inevitable. Your responses will be greatly appreciated. :confused:

Does a Cyst on my head make me ineligible to apply/being selected to UPT?? If not, does having it removed have any type of consequences on my chances of being selected??

I just comissioned and am suppose to be going to IFS in a few months. I just found out i have a rare condition that requires back surgery. Basically i have a hole in my vertabre and i have to have them stick some pieces of bone graph in there to stimulate bone growth and fill in the hole. The doctor said that i should be able to be doing physical activity in a month and that it should heal up to be 100% but that will take a while. Is there anyway this would be waiverable. If i have to push back dates will I automatically lose my slot? (I'm suppose to start UPT in Jan.)? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I'm also wondering if there's anyway i could keep t…

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…

I have seen that sleep apnea is a DQ but does anyone know if it is waiverable. An instructor at my school wants to apply for a flight slot but has had sleep apnea. He says it has been cured and that he has the paperwork on it. Any help would be great. Thanks.

I'm headed to Brooks in a couple weeks and have a question about the Pre-exam report (where you are asked about 70 questions about your medical history). One question asks for broken bones, dates, explanations etc.. My question is, what differences does the AF make between "Broken bones", "Stress fractures", and "Hairline fractures"? Here's my situation: 1985 - Broken right wrist 1995 - Broken right arm 1997 - Broken left arm (hairline fracture) 2002 - Stress fracture in left ankle All healed completley with no pins or surgury, so my next question is.. are these disqualifying? Any help would be great, thanks!

All, So I am having hip replacement surgery in March and because of the surgery, I am going to meet a MEB. My question is; which do you think is financially smarter? - 30% medically retire as an O-5 with 15.5 years of service and starting at the age of 41 - Retire at 20 years as an O-5 and not start collecting the retirement until the age of 58 I already have my airline job and it would be nice to only have one job but I want to do what's financially smarter.

recently had my fc1a which went smoothly. got recent results back from my last pap and they came back abnormal graded low severity. i'm going into the doctors in a week to have further tests for HPV... assuming this is the case, how long do i have to wait for my flight physical to be considered for approval...(like do i have to have a certain # of clear paps before its submitted, or a certain amount of time?) :(

I would like to become a fighter pilot but I have lattice degeneration. I wander whether I can get a waiver for that problem? Can you direct me to an appropriate reference? Thank You

There are two common points of confusion with flight surgeons. The first is whether or not a military flight doc is a surgeon as understood by the definition of a particular type of physician who carries privileges to perform invasive surgery. The second is whether or not flight docs are pilots. Many junior enlisted members see the flight doc wearing the same uniform, patches, and rank as a pilot and assumes since they fly, they are also pilots. There is another forum post on the pilot physician program, but this makes up only a very small number of individuals. The majority of flight surgeons are: 1. Not surgeons 2. Not pilots The followup question typicall…

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.

Big questions here... I did a search but couldn't find exactly what I was looking for. I am here at my training base for UPT and have noticed bright red blood in my stool twice. The first time was a week ago and it was a fair amount. Then today I noticed a little again but nothing like last week. When it happened last week I had worked out for two hours and then was outside in the heat for three hours when I started to get some stomach pains and then noticed the blood in my stool a short time later. Now, I have been experiencing certain things like this for a couple years. (No blood or not much to my knowledge in the past though.) I went to the doctor a whi…

I broke the scaphoid bone in my right wrist at the beginning of the summer requiring a permanent screw to be inserted to bring the bone back together. I am expected to make a full recovery and regain all motion in my wrist. Subsequently, I have an ANG UPT slot for FY06 (hopefully). I have been told that I will be needing a waiver, but I have no idea what to expect. Has anyone dealt with this type of injury before and how does the waiver process work for it? Thanks for any help you can give.

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

I am a member or AFROTC Det. 159 and have just been selected as a pilot candidate. I am worried that my pectus excavatum surgery will DQ me when I go to Brooks AFB next month for my Flying Class I. I was curious to know if anyone can give me advice on what I could do to be able to pass this. I have made contact with the doctor that did the surgery for a consult, but not sure if there is other documents that I can bring to help myself out. I would appreciate any help that anyone can give me, maybe even someone that has been through this situation before. P.S. I like the board and think that this is a great resource. I will advertise to the other members of my detachment…

Question, I have a small hemmoroid that i can't seem to shake. I have been using cream, and i dont even have any dicomfort, but it is still there. Are hemmoroids dq for flying or are they ok. I've heard they are dq and am worried that something as minute as this might get me? Thanks