The U.S. Navy is shelling out hundreds of thousands of dollars to help develop technology that can benefit their own men and women. Specifically, an app that can potentially detect the presence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), autism and other disorders.

Screening Disorders With a Smartphone

Researchers and a PTSD expert at the VA reveal that facial expressions can indicate PTSD as well as autism and a variety of disorders. The Autism & Beyond application that's being developed is initially focused to screen for autism, but the Navy's participation is fuelled by the hope of changing the algorithm a bit so it could also identify PTSD in veterans and other people.

Pedja Neskovic, who oversees the project in the Office of Naval Research, said that the app could eventually be expanded to include PTSD as speech and other signals are also monitored. The app will make use of a smartphone camera and a general algorithm.

"It can find patterns, not just in facial expressions but in different kinds of data sets, such as brain signals and speech, and it can be used on a continuous basis," Nescovic explained. "It's a completely new world."

PTSD expert and clinical psychologist at the Providence VA Medical Center added that the potential is there, especially as the app is still in its early stages. It would have to be proven effective in a large population over time, but the additional knowledge it could give could be valuable.

"So does this science and this study really then lead to additional questions, additional technological developments which help us to move forward?" he said. "It very well may. So I'm very excited, even though I'm saying it's very far off from having utility."

However, there are those who doubt the usefulness of such a tool, especially if it gives results that are inaccurate or erroneous. M. David Rudd, University of Memphis president and expert in suicide prevention and PTSD in military personnel, expressed that the innovation is "not particularly needed and not particularly useful."

Surf Therapy for PTSD

PTSD has been a big problem for a growing population, including veterans of war. There is a lot of research that goes into solving the problem and one of the most recent ones explore the possibility of subduing the trauma through exposure to surf or "surf therapy."

Digger James Milliss credited surfing with helping him cope with his violent experiences in the battlefield, saying that it also helped his son be more focused with his boundless energy. In his own take on the benefits of water, clinical neuro-psychologist Justin Feinstein is attempting to help patients deal with anxiety disorders with a sensory deprivation -- or floating -- tank.