Medical Care in Microgravity: February 2002

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Odyssey, Feburary 2002. Editor: Kris Cerone

Medical Care in Microgravity

By Tina Beychok

One of the most obvious changes to the human body with space flight is in the musculoskeletal system. The November 2001 issue of the magazine Biomechanics featured a cover story discussing this problem and new research that is being conducted to treat it. During space flight, the "antigravity" muscles in the legs and back that hold us upright and help us walk will atrophy, primarily from changes in protein synthesis due to lack of high-load exercise.

A new half-body pressure chamber is being tested at NASA's Ames lab, which will allow astronauts to exercise in a simulated gravity environment. The lower half of the body is enclosed in a chamber within which pressure can be decreased while the astronaut runs on a treadmill. The pressure change would increase the astronaut's downward force, thus simulating the loading effect of gravity.

Another group of researchers at the University of Colorado is testing a device that uses torque springs to simulate the effects of free weights. This will allow astronauts to prevent loss of muscle tone without having to use artificial gravity.

Researchers at the University of Vermont have developed a device that allows for a wide range of exercises using constant resistance, rather than gravity to do the work. The device is scheduled for testing on the KC-135, a plane that can simulate weightlessness for short periods of time.

Finally, one of the most interesting solutions to the problem of maintaining muscle tone comes from a group at UCI. They believe that a very large force needs to be exerted on muscles to keep them from degrading in zero-g. To accomplish this, they have developed a cycle that can generate up to six Gs and allow parts of the body to experience hyper gravity for part of each day.

The full text of the Biomechanics article can be found on the Web at http://www.biomech.com/db_area/archives/2001/0111.cover.bio.shtml. Next time, we'll look at just how healthy you have to be to go up in space!

Tina Beychok is a medical editor and is married to OASIS president Steve Bartlett. When not working as a space activist, she teaches fencing at Renaissance Fairs and greatly enjoys allowing five-year-olds to poke holes in her.