Shining light on trauma: treatment of chronic TBI to improve psychological health using photobiomodulation in service members, veterans and first responders

The Defense Health Agency awarded Western Institute For Veterans Research $4,613,247 through the Military Medical Research and Development program (CFDA 12.420) on September 1, 2025, to conduct research on photobiomodulation treatment for chronic traumatic brain injury (TBI) in service members, veterans, and first responders. The project, "Shining Light on Trauma: Treatment of Chronic TBI to Improve Psychological Health Using Photobiomodulation in Service Members, Veterans and First Responders," will be performed in Salt Lake City, Utah, with a completion date of October 31, 2029. The award supports a hypothesis-driven research initiative designed to develop innovative therapeutic solutions addressing a critical health challenge affecting military personnel and veterans.

The research program will deliver clinical trial execution, therapeutic development, and translational research services through collaboration with sub-awardees University of Utah and New York University. The University of Utah will provide co-leadership on project administration, community-based participatory research oversight through a Community Advisory Board, research compliance and reporting, and coordination of quarterly meetings and study milestones. New York University will contribute research design support, intervention implementation, data collection, data interpretation, and manuscript development. The project emphasizes knowledge translation products, policy documents, and community engagement to ensure research findings are disseminated and applicable to the target populations of service members, veterans, and first responders.