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The tendency to sneeze upon exposure to bright light is autosomal dominant and affects 18-35% of the population. This uncontrolled sneezing may represent a danger to pilots during flight. Testing was conducted using Ditric narrow band (+/- 10 nm) interference filters. Wavelengths at 430, 532, and 560 nm were tested with a GE 500-W photoflood BCA #1 bulb at constant intensity. Subsequent testing of military and civilian aviation goggles and sunglasses was conducted using a Digikrom 240 monochromator. Repeated testing with interference filters in a clinical setting showed no effect on sneezing in a susceptible subject. The photic sneeze reflex does not appear to be mediated by specific wavelengths of light, but rather by the change in light intensity. This could trigger an unexpected sneezing episode during critical periods of flight. This is an unrecognized and previously unreported danger to fixed-wing and rotary aircraft pilots.

Military primary care resident research training varies widely among internal medicine, pediatrics, and family practice programs. The level of resident physician participation in clinical investigations appears to be less than 30% in the federal physician training system. This paper reviews the current research activity in the Army, Navy, and Air Force primary care programs. It also reports on the results of a research training workshop and offers strategies to enhance resident involvement in clinical investigations.

Thousands of active-duty soldiers undergo weight evaluations each year and are subjected to disciplinary action if they fail to comply with established weight standards. This regulation consumes scarce available resources by requiring medical appointments. This study focuses on the use of bioelectrical impedance to determine body fat. It compared the physician's assistants with technicians for correlation of body fat percentage determinations. The correlation was r = .939 (p less than .0151) between the two groups. The use of technicians to determine body fat percentages using bioelectrical impedance appears to be a reasonable way to recover thousands of lost medical appointment slots.